Zooko Wilcox will step down as CEO of Electric Coin Company, the team behind privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash. (ZEC).
ECC announced a leadership change on Monday, with Josh Swihart promoted to replace Wilcox.
Swihart previously worked at ECC as one of the firm's vice presidents of growth from October 2018 to August 2023, but took four months off as a part-time investor at investment services firm Denver Angels in Colorado. according to LinkedIn.
"We rely on Josh's leadership: to find product-market fit, unlock new partnerships and collaborations, improve Zcash's usability, and increase adoption," ECC saying in a December 18 post.
"In addition to a vision for ECC and an optimistic passion for Zcash, Josh has strong business, technical and product experience," the company added.
I cannot begin anywhere other than to give my thanks and respect to @zooko. She gave life to Zcash and has been its standard bearer, not only for the project but also for human freedom. He is a hero.
โJosh Swihart (@jswihart) December 18, 2023
Swihart said the company will focus on increasing Zcash's utility through user-centric products over the coming months and better positioning ECC financially.
Wilcox, a self-described โmaximalist of human freedom,โ reflected positively about his time building Zcash from scratch in a December 18 Medium post:
"It has been an incredible experience and I will always be grateful to have had the opportunity to make one of my sci-fi dreams come true."
However, Wilcox said it was best for him and the company to part ways. โI don't think this combination of Zcash with me personally is healthy for me, and I don't think it's healthy for Zcash,โ he said.
"Zcash's role in human history is and will be far more important than that of any individual," Wilcox added.
The Zcash co-founder admitted that he had clashed with Swihart on how to best advance Zcash, but he said the two never disagreed about the "why."
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Wilcox will remain in his director position on the board of Bootstrap Project, ECC's parent company. Alan Fairless, Christina Garman, Michelle Lai and Zaki Manian are also on that board.
Zcash is a privacy-focused blockchain and cryptocurrency that launched on October 29, 2016. ECC was founded two years earlier in 2014.
ZCash is based on the Bitcoin codebase and, like Bitcoin (BTC), It has a fixed supply of 21 million coins.
The news did not have any material impact on the price of ZEC, which currently stands at $28.8. according to CoinGecko.
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