Zcash(ZEC) plummeted 28% due to the resignation of the entire ECC development team and management... governance conflicts "erupted"

Anonymous coin project Zcash (ZEC) once plummeted by 28%, causing a shock to the market. This decline was not due to macroeconomic factors but resulted from a severe governance collapse within the project’s core development company, Electric Coin Company (ECC).

According to industry reports on the 8th (local time), all members of ECC’s management and core development team have expressed their intention to resign. They have long-standing irreconcilable differences with the Bootstrap board of the Zcash Foundation, ultimately leading to this rare collective resignation.

◇ Non-technical dispute, essentially a “power struggle”… Conflict over development direction

The core reason for this incident is not technical flaws or failure to maintain the price, but disagreements over the project’s “control” and “development direction.”

It is understood that especially regarding wallet strategies and the implementation of the privacy-first roadmap, ECC and the Foundation’s board have significant differences in risk tolerance. Analysts believe that the trust between ECC, which holds the development leadership, and the Foundation, which has governance authority, has broken down, making continued cooperation impossible.

◇ Market reaction shows “panic”… Large-scale liquidation of long positions

Following the news of internal discord, the market reacted immediately. ZEC’s price plummeted by 28%, with large long positions expecting an increase being liquidated one after another, exacerbating the decline. Conversely, short positions surged, reflecting investor anxiety.

While outlets like CoinDesk analyzed that “Zcash governance dispute may not be as disastrous as it appears,” the market generally views the loss of core developers as a major negative signal.

◇ Future outlook: a divided vision, a slowing roadmap

It is reported that the ECC core personnel who resigned do not plan to leave the cryptocurrency industry but will establish a new independent legal entity. They stated that they will continue to promote the development of zero-knowledge proof technology and privacy tools.

However, industry experts have expressed concerns. Due to the breakdown of trust between the project’s leading builders and the board, the following side effects are expected to be inevitable: delays in the roadmap, loss of coordination within the community, and the emergence of competing visions.

An industry insider predicted: “The loss of the development team is not just a personnel change; it’s like the soul of the project being extracted. Whether Zcash can mend this governance crisis will determine its future survival.”