Among the privacy-focused chains, Zcash (ZEC) occupies a distinct position. Where Monero applies privacy by default to every transaction, and MobileCoin frames its privacy around mobile and messenger contexts, Zcash gives users a choice: transparent transactions that look like Bitcoin's, or shielded transactions protected by zero-knowledge proofs. That optional model has a specific commercial logic that's worth unpacking.
MixPay now routes ZEC end-to-end.
What "shielded" actually means
Zcash transactions can take one of two forms:
- Transparent (
t-addr) — addresses, amounts, and transaction history are publicly readable on the chain, the way a Bitcoin transaction is. - Shielded (
z-addr) — addresses, amounts, and the link between sender and recipient are concealed using zk-SNARKs (zero-knowledge proofs). The chain still validates the transaction — that funds aren't double-spent, that signatures are valid — but the public ledger doesn't reveal the details.
The cryptographic guarantee comes from a well-studied class of proofs that's been in production since 2016. It's a different primitive than Monero's ring-signature approach; the trade-offs are different too.
Why merchants might want this
Most merchants don't have a privacy requirement that drives chain selection. A subset do, and that's the audience this matters for:
- Privacy-positioned products. Security tooling, journalism platforms, services to privacy-aware communities. For these, offering a privacy chain at checkout is itself part of the product positioning.
- Customers transacting in sensitive contexts. Legitimate cases where the customer doesn't want their payment history publicly readable on a chain — payments to political organisations, donations, professional services in sensitive fields.
- Compliance with privacy-by-design product principles. Some products commit to not collecting or surfacing transaction-level data; supporting shielded ZEC removes one source of inadvertent exposure.
MixPay's compliance posture
A practical note: privacy-positioned chains attract more regulatory scrutiny than transparent ones. MixPay applies KYT compliance across ZEC just as we do for Monero and MobileCoin. The privacy benefit accrues to the user-side transaction; the merchant continues to receive auditable settlement reporting on their end.
This isn't a regression from the privacy property — it's how the model is meant to work. The user's chain-level privacy is preserved; the merchant's regulatory posture is preserved. MixPay sits between those concerns and resolves them.
How ZEC payments flow
The merchant-side flow is identical to every other chain MixPay routes. The customer pays in ZEC from any Zcash-compatible wallet (ZecWallet, Zashi, Cake Wallet, exchange apps that support shielded sends). MixPay confirms the transaction, applies a real-time price quote, and credits the merchant in their chosen settlement asset — typically a stablecoin.
Specifically:
- Zero merchant fees at the MixPay layer.
- Stablecoin settlement keeps the merchant's balance sheet ZEC-price-exposure-free.
- Same reporting surface — ZEC-routed transactions appear alongside every other chain in the dashboard.
- Standard wallet compatibility — both transparent (
t-addr) and shielded (z-addr) paths are supported on the customer side.
Where ZEC sits in MixPay's privacy roster
Three chains form the privacy slice of MixPay's coverage. They each solve the privacy question differently:
- Monero (XMR): privacy by default, ring signatures.
- MobileCoin (MOB): privacy by default, mobile-optimised.
- Zcash (ZEC): privacy by user choice, zk-SNARK-based.
The point isn't that one is "better." It's that the customer base for privacy-aware payments isn't monolithic, and offering all three lets the user pick the privacy posture and tooling that fits their context.
ZEC is now live on MixPay's supported assets. For deeper dives into individual chains, the chain-specific accept pages (where they exist) cover the wallet, confirmation, and FAQ detail.