- Zcash targets November 5 for its NU7 mainnet upgrade, cutting block times from 75 to 25 seconds.
- The upgrade will reach testnet on October 6 for testing.
Zcash developers have set November 5, 2026, as the target date for the NU7 mainnet upgrade, following agreement among teams working across the network. The upgrade is scheduled to reach Zcash testnet on October 6, giving developers and infrastructure operators time to test the changes before mainnet activation.
NU7 is coming! All of the Zcash development orgs have come to unanimous agreement about the contents and timeline of our next network upgrade, following the sentiment collection results earlier this week.
Activation approximately November 5.
Learn more:https://t.co/3pSKptV9gO
— Sean Bowe (@ebfull) September 17, 2026
Zcash NU7 Upgrade Cuts Block Time to 25 Seconds
One of the main changes in NU7 is a major reduction in Zcash’s target block interval. ZIP-218 will cut the interval from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, allowing blocks to be produced more frequently and potentially reducing transaction confirmation times.
The shorter block interval also requires changes to Zcash’s block subsidy rules. Developers plan to adjust the subsidy so that producing more blocks does not result in higher ZEC issuance over the same period.
NU7 will also disable version 4 transactions and introduce the Network Sustainability Mechanism through ZIP-234 and ZIP-235.
The selected NSM configuration will preserve Zcash’s existing halving schedule. Under the current plan, Zcash will begin reintroducing previously removed issuance in February 2031.
Wallets Are Not Expected to Need Major Changes
The NU7 upgrade does not introduce new transaction formats, meaning users should not face significant wallet changes.
However, infrastructure providers will need to prepare for the new network parameters. Full nodes, indexers and block explorers may require updates before the mainnet activation.
Community voting showed strong support for the main changes. About 99.9% of participating ZEC holders backed reducing the block interval from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, while about 98.9% supported keeping the existing halving schedule. Around 2.4 million ZEC participated in the voting.
About 96.6% of participating ZEC also supported beginning NSM reissuance in February 2031.
Zcash NU7 Mainnet Timeline
Developers expect to complete the code for the testnet features by September 30. They plan to activate Zcash NU7 on testnet on October 6, giving developers and ecosystem participants time to test the upgrade and assess its performance.
On October 20, developers plan to make the final mainnet activation decision and set the activation height. If the schedule stays on track, they will activate NU7 on Zcash mainnet on November 5, 2026, although they will confirm the date after the October 20 review.
The upgrade comes as ZEC has also seen increased market activity. ZEC was trading around $1,300 on September 18 after rising more than 17% in 24 hours and more than 170% over the previous month, according to the source data. Prices later moved near $1,470 to $1,510 depending on the trading venue.
Other developments around Zcash include Ledger’s planned Ironwood integration and growth in Grayscale’s ZCSH exchange-traded product. Zcash Labs also said it would commit $80,000 to support Ledger’s Ironwood shielded pool.
These developments have occurred alongside the rise in ZEC activity, but they do not establish a single reason for the price movement.
Overall, NU7 will focus on faster block production, transaction-version changes and adjustments to Zcash’s network sustainability rules, with infrastructure operators facing the main preparation work ahead of the planned November 5 activation.
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