Zcash & zOrdinals
The chain-level background: supply, zats, transparent value flow, and the shielded pool.
The same idea as ordinals, on a different chain
Ordinal theory on Bitcoin numbers satoshis in the order they are mined and follows them through transactions. zOrdinals applies that identical logic to Zcash zatoshis. Zcash shares Bitcoin's 21,000,000 coin cap, its eight decimal places and — in the transparent pool — its UTXO model, so the scheme carries over almost unchanged.
Chain parameters that matter
| Property | Bitcoin | Zcash |
|---|---|---|
| Smallest unit | satoshi | zatoshi (zat) |
| Units per coin | 100,000,000 | 100,000,000 |
| Supply cap | 21,000,000 BTC | 21,000,000 ZEC |
| Target block time | ~10 minutes | ~75 seconds |
| Halving interval | 210,000 blocks | 1,680,000 blocks (post-Blossom) |
| Accounting model | UTXO | UTXO (transparent) + shielded pools |
Faster blocks mean many more of them per era, so block-level rarity is far more plentiful on Zcash than on Bitcoin. Rarity tiers are calibrated for that in the rarity section.
Transparent value is traceable
zOrdinal theory needs to follow value from input to output. Transparent Zcash transactions — those using t addresses — expose inputs and outputs exactly like Bitcoin, so zats can be assigned deterministically by the first-in-first-out rule.
The shielded pool
This is not a flaw in Zcash — it is the privacy guarantee working as intended. zOrdinals therefore operates entirely on the transparent side of the chain, and treats the shielded pool as a one-way exit.
What the protocol does not do
- It does not change Zcash consensus, and it needs no soft fork.
- It does not issue a protocol token; the unit of account is ZEC.
- It does not require a trusted indexer — anyone can recompute the assignment.