Zashi, the flagship cell pockets constructed by Zcash’s authentic engineering staff, is rebranding to “Zodl” as its builders formally function outdoors the Electrical Coin Firm (ECC) construction. The change issues much less as a beauty refresh than as a sign: the identical builders are persevering with product work, however beneath a brand new company banner after a governance rupture that spilled into public view in early January.
Zcash Pockets Zashi Renamed Zodl
In a submit on X dated Feb. 16, the pockets staff mentioned the subsequent app replace will rename Zashi to Zodl “with out impacting the consumer expertise,” stressing there’s “no motion required” from customers. “It’s a brand new model for a brand new chapter, however every thing else stays the identical: the pockets, the staff behind it, and our dedication to Zcash,” the announcement learn. “We’re transferring ahead with readability and function, and this variation displays the constructing momentum.”
The submit additionally tied the rebrand to a broader organizational reset. “In January of this 12 months, the whole Electrical Coin Firm (ECC) staff, the unique creators of Zcash and Zashi, left ECC and fashioned a brand new firm,” it mentioned, naming the brand new entity Zcash Open Improvement Lab (ZODL) and positioning Zodl because the “Zcash flagship pockets.” The staff framed the transfer as a method to pursue progress “with out reliance on the Zcash growth fund,” whereas preserving continuity on delivery and assist.
On mission, the pockets staff used language that will likely be acquainted to long-time Zcash followers, explicitly anchoring the product roadmap to privacy-first funds. “We envision a world with out mass monetary surveillance. A world the place law-abiding folks can transact freely and privately, with out worry that their knowledge will likely be exploited or weaponized,” the submit mentioned. “There isn’t any sovereignty with out privateness. Our banner has modified, however our mission has not.”
The instant sensible impact for customers is restricted: the identical app is anticipated to replace in place, with branding modifications rolling out throughout channels, together with the Discord assist presence. The extra consequential change is governance and possession context: the pockets is now explicitly offered as a product of ZODL quite than ECC, after weeks of public dispute about who may management, finance, and probably commercialize consumer-facing efforts round Zashi.
The Background Story
The break traces again to a late-2025 conflict between ECC management and Bootstrap, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit that governs ECC. In early January, former ECC CEO Josh Swihart mentioned board actions left the staff no viable path inside the prevailing construction. “Sadly, selections made by 4 of Bootstrap’s board members compelled each particular person at ECC to exit the corporate, in a short time,” Swihart wrote on the Zcash Neighborhood Discussion board on Jan. 9. “I want we hadn’t been compelled to maneuver so shortly. However we had no selection. It is a severe matter. It’s not a recreation. And as you see, the implications, extreme.”
Bootstrap, for its half, has argued the flashpoint was a proposed transaction to maneuver Zashi right into a for-profit construction and appeal to outdoors capital, which it says needed to be dealt with as a related-party deal involving nonprofit-controlled property.
In a public assertion and accompanying timeline, Bootstrap described talks round exterior funding and “different buildings to denationalise Zashi” intensifying in late October 2025, then accelerating in December amid rushed deadlines, incomplete documentation, and authorized constraints tied to nonprofit fiduciary duties. The timeline states that issues “quickly escalated” round Dec. 20 when the board was offered with a Jan. 1 deadline to approve a deal, adopted by management departures in early January and the broader staff exit shortly after.
At press time, Zcash traded at $284.34.
Featured picture created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
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