FPF Q1 2026 Report + Supplements

The Financial Privacy Foundation (FPF) has released its Q1 2026 report, detailing a period of record-breaking growth for Zcash Community Grants (ZCG) and expanded operational support for community bounty projects.

As an independent Cayman Islands foundation, FPF provides the essential "back-office" infrastructure—handling the legal, financial, and administrative heavy lifting—so that Zcash’s unincorporated decentralized teams can stop worrying about paperwork and stay focused on building code and community.

Zcash Community Grants (ZCG) Performance

Q1 2026 was a historic quarter for the ZCG program. Under FPF’s administration, the committee hit several all-time highs:

• Record Grant Volume: 14 grants/IC agreements approved (the most in a single quarter).

• Massive Interest: 68 submissions received, representing a 258% increase over Q1 2025.

• Operational Velocity: 62 milestones paid out (a 72% YoY increase), with an average committee decision time of just 11.3 days from submission.

• Financials: $649,855 in new grants approved, with total grant liabilities ending the quarter at ~$2.2M.

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FPF also successfully onboarded Hanh as a new ZCG member and transitioned grantee communications to GitHub to improve transparency and response times.

Bounty Projects & Retroactive Grants

FPF continues to act as the financial engine for key community initiatives, ensuring contributors get paid quickly and transparently.

• ZecHub: Distributed 52.41 ZEC (~$14,363) across 129 payments to 33 unique recipients. Payments are consistently processed weekly within four hours of notification.

• ZK AV Club: Launched a new "gig" payment program, distributing 10.83 ZEC to contributors in March.

• Coinholder-Directed Retroactive Grants (CDRGP): FPF managed the Q4 2025 payout cycle and Q1 proposal and payout cycles. 

Special Supplement: ZCG Independence Feasibility

As required by ZIP 1016, FPF conducted an in-depth review of whether ZCG should spin off into its own independent legal entity.

The Findings:

• Feasibility: It is legally and operationally possible to form an independent "ZCG Foundation" in the Cayman Islands (or another suitable jurisdiction).

• The Cost of Independence: Transitioning to a standalone entity would likely increase administrative costs by 50–70% (estimated at $241k/year vs the current $145k/year). This is due to duplicating costs for legal, audits, insurance, and dedicated staff.

• The Recommendation: While independence supports decentralization goals, the current "Managed Services" model is significantly more efficient. FPF recommends maintaining the current structure for now while reassessing as we approach the 2028 halving.

  
  

ZCG Feedback on FPF Performance 

In a Q1 survey, ZCG committee members rated FPF’s effectiveness. 4 out of 5 members rated the support as "Very Effective," specifically highlighting the time saved on administrative formalities, which allows them to focus purely on evaluating grants.

Full transparency is vital to our mission. You can view the full report details and supplemental data via the full report. We look forward to a productive Q2!

The Financial Privacy Foundation Team