Ycash: A Digital Currency Focused on Privacy and Fair Distribution

What is Ycash

Friends, imagine the cash we use in daily life—what’s its biggest feature? Isn’t it that when you spend money or receive money, it’s hard for others to know the details of those transactions? Ycash (YEC for short) is a blockchain project that aims to bring this “cash-like” experience to the digital world. You can think of it as a form of digital cash, with a primary focus on privacy and decentralized payments.

Ycash is a “fork” of Zcash. A “fork” is like a fork in the road in software development, where developers take the original Zcash code and choose a new path, creating Ycash. Zcash itself is based on the code of Bitcoin. So, you can think of Ycash as a “grandchild” of Bitcoin—it inherits the digital currency features of Bitcoin and the powerful privacy protection technology from Zcash.

Its core goal is to let you make digital transactions as privately as cash, without revealing your identity, transaction amount, or other sensitive information. In short, Ycash is designed for those who want to protect their financial privacy in the digital world.

Project Vision and Value Proposition

Ycash’s vision is to become “the cash of the future,” empowering global local and online communities by providing a private and fair digital currency. Its value proposition centers on solving two core issues:

Privacy Issues

We all know that while Bitcoin is anonymous, its transaction records are public and transparent—anyone can look up the sender, receiver, and amount of every transaction. It’s like using a bank card: others may not know who you are, but banks and some institutions can see every transaction you make. Ycash believes this isn’t private enough. It aims for true anonymity, so your transaction details can’t be tracked—just like handing a bill from your pocket to a friend, with no one else knowing.

Distribution Issues

Mining for Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies (where Mining means using computer power to compete for the right to record transactions and earn new coins) increasingly relies on specialized ASIC miners (hardware designed specifically for mining), concentrating mining power in the hands of those with the funds to buy these machines. Ycash wants to change this, making it possible for ordinary people to mine with regular home computer graphics cards (GPU), achieving fairer token distribution and avoiding centralization.

Compared to Zcash, Ycash not only inherits its privacy technology but also emphasizes commodity hardware mining (mining with regular GPUs) to promote broader participation and fairer token distribution, and it differs from Zcash in the allocation ratio of its development fund.

Technical Features

To realize its vision, Ycash adopts several key technologies:

Privacy Technology: Zero-Knowledge Proofs (zk-SNARKs)

This is one of Ycash’s core technologies. Imagine you have a locked box with a secret inside. Zero-knowledge proofs let you prove to others that you know the secret without opening the box or revealing the secret itself. In Ycash, this technology is called zk-SNARKs, allowing the network to verify the validity of transactions without revealing the sender, receiver, or amount. These transactions are called Shielded Transactions.

Consensus Mechanism: Proof-of-Work (PoW)

Like Bitcoin, Ycash uses Proof-of-Work (PoW) to secure the network and validate transactions. It’s like everyone solving math problems together—whoever solves it first gets to package new transaction blocks and earn rewards. Ycash uses a specific PoW algorithm called Equihash (192,7). This algorithm is designed to be more suitable for mining with regular computer GPUs rather than expensive, specialized ASIC miners. The goal is to allow more ordinary people to participate in mining, prevent excessive concentration of mining power, and increase network decentralization.

Blockchain Architecture

Ycash has its own independent blockchain. It forked from the Zcash blockchain at block 570,000 in 2019, meaning that up to that point, Ycash and Zcash shared the same blockchain history. Ycash’s software is built on Zcash’s, so many technical documents and operations can refer to Zcash resources.

Tokenomics

Ycash’s token is YEC, and its economic model is designed for fair distribution and long-term value.

Token Basics

• Token Symbol: YEC
• Total Supply: YEC’s total supply is strictly capped at 21 million, the same as Bitcoin. This fixed supply is designed to prevent inflation and ensure token scarcity.
• Issuance Mechanism: YEC is mainly generated through mining.

Token Distribution

Ycash’s token distribution mechanism is a key difference from Zcash:

• Miner Rewards: 95% of newly issued YEC is allocated to miners. This reflects Ycash’s emphasis on commodity hardware mining and fair distribution, ensuring the vast majority of new coins enter circulation through market-driven mining.
• Ycash Development Fund: The remaining 5% of newly issued YEC is continuously allocated to the Ycash Foundation (a non-profit organization) for its development fund. This fund supports ongoing development, security maintenance, and community building, ensuring the project’s long-term health. Notably, this 5% allocation is permanent, unlike Zcash’s early 20% “founders’ reward,” which ended after a certain block height.

Token Use Cases

The main use of YEC is as a payment method for private and secure transactions. Additionally, it can be used in some DeFi (Decentralized Finance) applications as a Utility Token, such as for staking (Staking, locking tokens to support the network and earn rewards) and governance decisions. It also has potential applications in the creation and trading of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens, unique digital assets).

Team, Governance, and Funding

Team

The Ycash project was initiated by the Ycash development team, which includes contributors from the Zcash community. Howard Loo is mentioned as the founder and software engineer of the Ycash Foundation.

Governance

At the core of Ycash’s governance structure is the Ycash Foundation, a non-profit organization that manages the project’s 5% development fund and is dedicated to making Ycash a fair, open medium of exchange. The foundation also develops Ycash-related software and works to make Ycash more accessible and user-friendly.

Funding

Ongoing project funding mainly comes from the aforementioned 5% block reward, which is dedicated to supporting development, security enhancements, and community activities.

Roadmap

Since its launch in 2019, Ycash has reached several key milestones and has future plans:

Major Historical Milestones (some completed)

• July 2019: Ycash officially launched as a fork of Zcash.
• August 2019: Released the early development roadmap, focusing on:
  • Improvements to ycashd and YecWallet: Including development of paper wallets (YecPaperWallet), fast sync mode, null migration tools, diversified addresses, better rescanning and private key import, viewing keys, etc.
  • Light Wallet: Developed the YecLite light wallet.
  • Merchant Tools: Planned point-of-sale systems and encrypted memo tools for accepting Ycash.
  • Mining Algorithm: Investigated and implemented PoW mining algorithms for commodity hardware.
• Wry (Wrapped Ycash): Currently, a “Wrapped Ycash” token called Wry is in testing, aiming to bring Ycash into the DeFi ecosystem.

Future Plans (some from early roadmap, may be updated or adjusted)

• Wallet Feature Enhancements: Planned features include wallet encryption, BIP39 mnemonic support, and integration with hardware wallets like Trezor.
• ZLiTE Light Wallet: Plans to implement a lighter client based on the ZLiTE system to support privacy transactions on mobile devices.
• Merchant Adoption: Ongoing development of point-of-sale systems and encrypted memo tools to promote merchant acceptance of Ycash payments.
• Mining Algorithm Optimization: Continued research and improvement of PoW mining algorithms suitable for commodity hardware to further enhance decentralization.

Please note, the roadmap is dynamic; for specific progress and the latest plans, refer to official Ycash announcements.

Common Risk Reminders

All blockchain projects carry risks, and Ycash is no exception. When learning about Ycash, keep the following in mind:

Technical and Security Risks

• Experimental Project: Ycash is described as an “experimental project” and “work in progress.” This means it may be less stable than mature projects and could have unknown technical bugs or potential issues.
• Codebase Inheritance Risk: Ycash is based on Zcash’s codebase; while it inherits mature cryptography, it may also inherit undiscovered vulnerabilities from Zcash.
• Privacy Technology Complexity: zk-SNARKs technology is highly complex, requiring advanced expertise to implement and maintain. Any small error could lead to privacy leaks or security issues.

Economic Risks

• Market Volatility: Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile. YEC’s price may be affected by various factors, including market sentiment, macroeconomic changes, and regulatory policies, posing investment risks.
• Liquidity Risk: Compared to mainstream cryptocurrencies, YEC’s trading volume and market depth may be lower, leading to larger bid-ask spreads or difficulty buying/selling quickly when needed.
• Competition Risk: The privacy coin sector has other competing projects; Ycash must continually innovate and develop to remain competitive.

Compliance and Operational Risks

• Regulatory Uncertainty: The regulatory stance on privacy coins is unclear globally. Some countries or regions may restrict or ban them, affecting Ycash’s availability and market growth.
• Community and Development Activity: Long-term success depends on an active developer community and ongoing development. If community activity declines, project progress may stall.
• Centralization Risk: Although Ycash strives for decentralized mining, future emergence of new specialized mining hardware or excessive mining pool concentration could still pose centralization risks.

Remember, the above information is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice. Always conduct your own thorough research before making any decisions.

Verification Checklist

To learn more about Ycash, you can consult the following official and third-party resources:

• Official Website: y.cash
• Whitepaper: Usually available on the official website or major crypto information platforms (such as CoinMarketCap, Crypto.com).
• GitHub Repository: ycashfoundation/ycash Here you can check code activity, development progress, and contributors.
• Block Explorer: Used to query transaction records and block information on the Ycash blockchain, usually linked on the official website or related info sites.
• Social Media: Follow the Ycash Foundation on Twitter (@YcashFoundation), Discord, Telegram, and Reddit for the latest updates and community discussions.

Project Summary

Ycash (YEC) is a blockchain project dedicated to providing a private, decentralized digital cash experience. As a fork of Zcash, it inherits powerful zero-knowledge proof (zk-SNARKs) technology, aiming to address the privacy shortcomings of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, enabling truly anonymous transactions for users.

At the same time, Ycash uses a Proof-of-Work (PoW) algorithm friendly to regular GPUs, striving for fairer token distribution and preventing excessive concentration of mining power, thereby enhancing network decentralization. The project is supported by the Ycash Foundation, with a dedicated development fund for ongoing growth.

Overall, Ycash is a project with a clear focus on privacy and decentralization, seeking to recreate the anonymity of cash in the digital world and give more people the opportunity to participate in digital currency issuance. However, as an experimental project, it faces technical, market, and regulatory risks.

Please note, the above is an objective introduction to the Ycash project and does not constitute investment advice. The cryptocurrency market is highly risky; be sure to fully understand and assess risks before conducting your own research and making decisions.