# Zano (ZANO): D-Score 72/100 — Decentralized

**BlockIndex D-Score: 72/100 (Decentralized).** Zano (ZANO) is a Layer 1 cryptocurrency using PoW/PoS consensus. Zano: Privacy‑first Layer‑1 blockchain with Confidential Assets, CryptoNote heritage and hybrid PoW/PoS consensus.

_Source: https://blockindex.ai/coin/zano · Data by BlockIndex.AI · Updated 2026-06-19_

## D-Score breakdown (0-100, higher means more decentralized)
| Component | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall D-Score | 72 |
| Node distribution | 8 |
| Initial distribution | 25 |
| Governance | 21 |
| Age and history | 13 |
| Autonomy | 5 |

## Key facts
- Layer: Layer 1
- Consensus: PoW/PoS (Other)
- Launch: Other (2019)
- Founder: Andrey Sabelnikov, Pavel Ravaga
- VC funded: No
- Max supply: N/A
- Circulating: 15,333,790

## Market data (as of 2026-06-19)
- Price: $9.4
- Market cap: $144.14M
- 24h volume: $1.54M
- 24h change: +1.66% · 7d change: +2.40%

## About
Zano is a privacy‑first, open‑source Layer‑1 blockchain that officially launched in 2019 as the successor to the CryptoNote lineage project Boolberry (originating in 2014). The project’s founding team includes lead developer Andrey Sabelnikov and co‑founder Pavel Ravaga, and Zano positions itself as a native privacy ecosystem focused on confidential transfers, private staking and multi‑asset privacy through its Zarcanum hard fork. Zano emphasizes on‑chain confidentiality by default: it leverages CryptoNote‑derived cryptographic primitives such as ring signatures (d/v‑CLSAG variants), stealth addresses, and Bulletproofs+ to obscure senders, receivers and amounts. Over time the project expanded beyond single‑asset transfers into a multi‑asset model, enabling private tokens and shielded assets that are native to the chain.

Technically, Zano is notable for its hybrid consensus model and its privacy‑enhancing execution environment. Zarcanum (implemented March 2024) introduced Confidential Assets and a novel Proof‑of‑Stake variant that conceals stake amounts, transitioning the chain into a multi‑asset privacy platform while retaining CPU‑friendly Proof‑of‑Work security alongside energy‑efficient staking. The chain supports built‑in staking with no minimums or time locks, multi‑signature wallets, escrow contracts, and aliasing for usernames. Block production is continuous (explorer snapshots show millions of transactions and multi‑million block heights) and the network integrates several developer‑facing APIs and marketplace tooling (ZanoTrade) to enable on‑chain trading of confidential assets. The default ring size and optimizations like Bulletproofs+ are designed to reduce proof sizes while preserving unlinkability and amount confidentiality.

Zano’s primary use cases cluster around privacy‑preserving payments, confidential asset issuance (private stablecoins and shielded tokens), private staking for network security, and privacy‑enabled dApps and marketplaces. The Zarcanum upgrade broadened the utility of the mainnet by allowing token issuance that inherits the chain’s privacy guarantees, enabling decentralized exchanges and on‑chain marketplaces to support shielded instruments. Accessibility has improved through third‑party wallet integrations (Cake Wallet, Atomic) and listings across centralized and decentralized exchanges, while continued development work focuses on a mobile wallet with Confidential Assets support and a browser extension optimized for DEX interactions.

Tokenomics and governance details in the provided materials are intentionally sparse: the chain’s explorer lists coins emitted (~15,079,894.20 ZANO) and staking participation (~62.33% of circulating supply staked in snapshots), but there is no explicit premine percentage or public initial percentage documented in the supplied files, and no formal corporate foundation or CEO is named. Market snapshots from CoinMarketCap/Messari show price and market cap metrics (price ~ $8.66, market cap ~$130M at the cited snapshot) and documented ATH/ATL milestones. Governance is primarily protocol‑upgrade driven (hard forks and releases such as Zarcanum) rather than an on‑chain DAO in the provided material. Overall, Zano presents as an actively maintained privacy L1 with distinctive cryptography and multi‑asset confidentiality features, ongoing ecosystem integrations, and a clear technical roadmap centered on Confidential Assets and improved wallet/DEX tooling.

## Links
- Website: https://zano.org/
- Whitepaper: https://github.com/hyle-team/docs/blob/master/zano/Zano_WP_1.1.pdf
- GitHub: N/A

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About the D-Score: BlockIndex.AI rates decentralization from 0 to 100 across node distribution, initial distribution, governance, age and history, and autonomy. Methodology: https://blockindex.ai/dscore
