Zcash (ZEC) has emerged as one of the stronger-performing altcoins over the past 48 hours, driven by a major protocol transition and heightened market attention centered on the imminent Ironwood (NU6.3) hard fork scheduled for July 28, 2026 at block 3,428,143. The upgrade introduces critical infrastructure changes designed to address a previously disclosed soundness bug in the Orchard shielded pool and establish a framework for future scaling improvements.