Zcash activates NU7, cutting target block time from 75 to 25 seconds

what happened

Zcash's NU7 network upgrade went live in early November at block height 3,543,405, reducing the target block interval from 75 to 25 seconds and changing the economics of future block rewards. NewsBTC reports that the Zcash Foundation's Zebra 7 release notes list the same activation height.

To keep more frequent blocks from tripling new coin issuance, the scheduled reward per block has been rescaled, and remaining issuance and halving intervals have been adjusted. NU7 also adds a Network Sustainability Mechanism that, according to accounts of the upgrade, sends 60% of transaction fees to a public reserve for future miner reissuance, while the remaining 40% goes to miners when fees are collected. Support for version-four transactions, including the original Sprout pool, has been retired.

Nodes must run an NU7-compatible client to stay on the consensus chain after activation, and wallets or services relying on outdated software may face problems.

why it matters

For Zcash miners, part of the fee income is now set aside for future rewards rather than paid out immediately, which lowers the near-term fee revenue available to them. Shorter target spacing changes how rewards arrive over time at the same overall issuance, while real confirmation speed depends on exchange and payment-processor policies. The key question is how the reserve will affect long-term network security.

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