Zcash is a privacy-preserving cryptocurrency providing anonymous value transfer using zero-knowledge cryptography. The protocol provides the option for transactions to be either shielded, in which case they will be completely anonymous, or transparent, in which case they will be visible on the Zcash blockchain. Zcash pays out a portion of its block rewards, called the "Founder's Reward", to fund protocol development. It currently allocates the Founder's Reward to the Electric Coin Company and the Zcash Foundation who develop and steward the Zcash protocol respectively.