Foundry to Roll Out Institutional‑Grade Zcash Mining Pool in April
The Digital Currency Group subsidiary, which runs the world’s largest Bitcoin mining pool, aims to fill a compliance gap in the privacy‑coin sector as ZEC’s market value surges.
SAN FRANCISCO, April 2026 – Foundry Digital, the mining arm of Digital Currency Group (DCG) that operates the highest‑hashrate Bitcoin pool globally, announced plans to launch a new mining pool dedicated to Zcash (ZEC) for institutional participants. The service, slated for an April debut, will be based in the United States and built on the same compliance architecture that underpins Foundry USA Pool, which carries both SOC 1 Type 2 and SOC 2 Type 2 certifications.
Why Zcash Now?
Zcash, launched in 2016, distinguishes itself by using zero‑knowledge proofs to hide transaction details while still allowing on‑chain verification. The coin has attracted growing attention from public‑market investors and corporate treasuries, with its price up roughly 600 % compared with a year ago. Recent trading has seen ZEC hover around $212, a modest dip of about 4 % in the last 24 hours and a 10 % decline over the past week.
Despite the price rally, the mining infrastructure for Zcash has lagged behind that of Bitcoin. A single pool currently dominates the majority of ZEC hashpower, raising concerns about centralisation and the lack of a compliant, institution‑ready alternative.
Foundry’s Strategic Move
“Expanding into Zcash is a natural evolution of our mission to provide secure, compliant mining services for the broader digital‑asset economy,” said Mike Colyer, CEO of Foundry Digital. “While ZEC is emerging as a serious asset class for institutions, its mining ecosystem has not kept pace. Our new pool will bring the same rigorous controls and auditability that our Bitcoin miners rely on.”
The forthcoming pool will be governed by the compliance framework of Foundry USA Pool, which already satisfies stringent U.S. regulatory standards. By offering SOC 1 and SOC 2 certifications, the service is positioned to meet the internal‑control and reporting requirements of publicly listed companies, hedge funds, and other regulated entities.
Zcash co‑founder Zooko Wilcox, now Chief Product Officer at Shielded Labs, welcomed the initiative. “An institutional‑grade pool will help disperse mining power beyond the current concentration and should encourage fresh participants to join the network,” he said.
Market Context
The announcement arrives shortly after the Zcash Open Development Lab (ZODL) secured $25 million in seed funding to accelerate development of privacy‑focused tools and applications. The influx of capital into the Zcash ecosystem underscores a broader industry trend: a growing appetite for privacy-preserving assets that can be integrated into compliant investment products.
Analysts note that a diversified mining landscape could bolster network security, improve decentralisation metrics, and potentially stabilise the token’s price volatility. However, they also caution that the pool’s success will hinge on its ability to attract enough hashpower to compete with existing operators while maintaining the high compliance standards required by institutional clients.
Key Takeaways
- Institutional Focus: Foundry’s Zcash pool will be the first U.S.-based, compliant mining service aimed at public companies and large‑scale miners.
- Compliance Edge: The pool will inherit SOC 1 Type 2 and SOC 2 Type 2 certifications, aligning with the audit and reporting standards of regulated entities.
- Ecosystem Impact: By providing an alternative to the dominant Zcash pool, the service could improve decentralisation and attract new mining participants.
- Market Momentum: ZEC’s 600 % year‑over‑year price gain and recent $25 million funding round for ZODL signal heightened investor interest in privacy coins.
- Risk Considerations: Success depends on the pool’s ability to secure sufficient hashpower and to sustain compliance amidst evolving regulatory scrutiny.
About Foundry Digital
A subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, Foundry Digital operates the world’s largest Bitcoin mining pool by hashrate and provides a suite of mining‑related services, including hardware financing, energy procurement, and compliance solutions.
About Zcash
Zcash is a privacy‑centric cryptocurrency that uses zk‑SNARK zero‑knowledge proofs to enable shielded transactions, allowing users to transact confidentially while still maintaining a verifiable public ledger.
This article was produced with assistance from AI tools. All content is curated, edited, and fact‑checked by a human editorial team.
Source: https://thedefiant.io/news/blockchains/foundry-to-launch-institutional-zcash-mining-pool
