The selection of this week’s most interesting coins consists of three cryptocurrency projects that are expected to benefit from the upcoming upgrades, announcements, and other events, both in terms of attention and valuation.
1. Zcash (ZEC)
Zcash is another anonymity-focused cryptocurrency that obscures the transaction data in this week’s selection. To hide sender’s and receiver’s wallets and identities Zcash makes use of zero-knowledge proofs, which act by increasing the number of potential inputs and outputs for a transaction. On Zcash it is also possible to opt for an unshielded, i.e. public transaction.
Zcash Network Upgrade Also on July 16
Similarly, to Grin, also Zcash will upgrade its network this week. The fourth major Zcash network upgrade is scheduled to launch at block 903000, which is estimated to be mined on July 16, at 10:23 UTC+00:00. The network update has been dubbed ZcashHeartwood and will integrate to ZIPs. Flyclient (ZIP-221) will ensure that also light clients have access to efficient proofs of Proof-of-Work, while Shielded Coinbase (ZIP-213) sets new consensus rules that allow Coinbase funds to be mined to shielded Sapling addresses, which is impossible in the older versions of the network, as shielded transactions required significant memory and CPU resources. More info can be found on the official Heartwood page.
2. Algorand (ALGO)
Algorand is a blockchain platform that can be used for digitalization and tokenization of almost any kind of asset via the creation of so-called Algorand Standard Assets (ASAs). Additionally, the project features Atomic transfers – a solution for secure and immediate settlement for multiparty transactions – and supports the on-chain creation of smart contracts. Furthermore, Algorand has implemented a pure proof-of-stake (PPoS) consensus protocol, meaning that anyone holding ALGO can participate in the process and be rewarded for that.
Algorand To Host a Large Token Launch on July 16
A New York-based private investment platform Republic.co is set to conduct a sale of Republic Note Tokens, the company’s profit-sharing tokens. The sale of Republic Note tokens will be open to both accredited and non-accredited investors on July 16. The company, which seeks $8,000,000 of a fresh capital via the sale of their token, will issue 800,000,000 Republic Notes. At launch, however, only about 310 to 380 million notes will be up for grabs at a price of $0.12 per note and a minimum investment of $100. Holders of the Notes will be eligible for potential dividends and Republic also plans to make the Notes a tradable asset. Find out more here.
3. Grin (GRIN)
Grin is a cryptocurrency, which offers a far greater level of privacy to its users than other major blockchains. By utilizing MimbleWimble technology its blockchain can hide most of the transaction’s data, such as sending address, receiving address, and amount of coins sent. In addition to that, transaction data can be further anonymized by aggregating multiple transactions and by being relayed among private nodes in a process called “random walk”.
Grin to Receive a Major Mainnet Upgrade
This week Grin will undergo its third out of four planned hard forks. The third hard fork is scheduled to trigger at block height 786,240 and will bring Grin v4.0.0. to the mainnet. This network-wide upgrade is estimated to happen on July 16. Stored GRIN coins will not be affected; however, users will need to update their binaries to continue using the network. Additional information regarding GRIN’s July 16 hard-fork can be accessed here. Grin will conclude the series of four hard forks, which have been planned ever since the project’s launch, at block height 1,048,320, when the last scheduled blockchain split will take place.
