zkSNACKs to Discontinue CoinJoin Service, Citing Incoming U.S. Regulatory Measures
Summary:
zkSNACKs is discontinuing its CoinJoin coordination service, a major privacy-enhancing tool within the Bitcoin ecosystem. The decision is in response to recent legal and regulatory changes in the US related to the cryptocurrency and privacy-enhancing tools. CEO Max Hillebrand confirmed that Wasabi Wallet, a Bitcoin wallet developed by zkSNACKs using CoinJoin, will continue operation as a standard BTC wallet. He further acknowledged that client-side filtering architecture, Tor integration, and custom coin selection features of Wasabi would continue to provide substantial privacy, but not at the unmatched level of CoinJoins. The discontinuation will also impact products and services including Trezor Suite and BTCPayServer post-June 2024.
The Bitcoin sphere is all set to bid adieu to a key privacy-boosting service as zkSNACKs reveals its plan to cease its CoinJoin coordination service. The CEO of zkSNACKs, Max Hillebrand, in an exclusive interaction with Cointelegraph, stated that this move was in response to the recent updates in legal and regulatory guidelines in the US. To remain in compliance with these regulations related to the use of privacy-enhancing tools and cryptocurrency sphere, Hillebrand felt the need to discontinue the CoinJoin service. Edward Snowden, a former NSA whistleblower, expressed regret over this decision.
Hillebrand voiced his discontent, stating that the Bitcoin community would be at a significant loss after the cessation of a service that bolstered privacy via the coinjoin mechanism. He said it was disappointing to see zkSNACKs pull back support from Bitcoin developers and privacy educators. He further elucidated that Wasabi Wallet, a Bitcoin wallet by zkSNACKs that incorporated the CoinJoin service, would continue operating as a standard BTC wallet, aiding users in sending and receiving Bitcoin using private keys.
Hillebrand pointed out that the client-side filtering architecture, Tor integration, and custom coin selection features of Wasabi would continue providing users considerable privacy, though not unrivaled like that offered by CoinJoins. Speaking of the Bitcoin blockchain's inherent nature, Hillebrand concluded that CoinJoins are indispensable for achieving complete user privacy.
The future of privacy protocols and CoinJoin services, particularly in regions outside the US, remains uncertain, stated the zkSNACKs CEO. He also informed that the discontinuation of zkSNACK's CoinJoin coordination service may impact various ecosystem services and products, including Trezor Suite and BTCPayServer, which would be unable to provide it to users post-June 2024.
As for CoinJoin's functioning, Hillebrand had elaborated in a detailed discussion at Bitcoin Amsterdam in 2023 that CoinJoin aids in muddling Bitcoin transactions. This provided a protective layer by combining multiple users' inputs and outputs into a single transaction, making it challenging for any outsider to trace specific transaction details.
The Wasabi Wallet, introduced in 2018 after rigorous research, uses Tor for anonymity, a light client approach for checking balances, and block filters to validate transactions securely, all without compromising privacy or downloading the entire Bitcoin blockchain.
Published At
5/6/2024 12:28:32 PM
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