The planned upgrade would replace the privacy blockchain’s hybrid PoW/PoS model, burn all transaction fees, lower block rewards and keep Hard Fork 6 on track for late August ahead of a targeted 2027 transition.
Privacy blockchain Zano said its Zenith upgrade has entered implementation, with a full network transition to a pure proof-of-stake model targeted for 2027 and no activation date set yet. The protocol, developed with Common Prefix and built on Zano’s Zarcanum privacy architecture, is designed to preserve private staking by keeping stake amounts hidden and block production non-linkable while replacing the network’s hybrid proof-of-work/proof-of-stake setup. Under the proposed design, block times would fall from about one minute to roughly 15 seconds and recommended confirmations would decline from 10 blocks to four to six, reducing typical confirmation time to about 60 to 90 seconds. Zano also said Zenith would use ephemeral blocks to limit blockchain bloat as throughput rises. The upgrade would also change the network’s token economics. All transaction fees would be burned, while validator rewards would follow a lower block reward emission schedule than miners and stakers receive under the current hybrid model. Once Zenith activates, roughly 720 ZANO in daily proof-of-work issuance, or about 262,800 ZANO annually, would also end. Before that longer-term shift, Zano expects Hard Fork 6 to activate around Aug. 25-27, introducing gateway addresses as the main near-term network change. The project said the fork will serve as an earlier test of its ability to execute upgrades on schedule.