Deep Dive
1. End Etherscan Support (7 January 2026)
Overview: ZKsync will discontinue Etherscan support for its Era chain on 7 January 2026, shifting all block, transaction, and contract data to its native explorer (Coinspeaker). This move is driven by the network's evolution into interconnected chains with features like native interoperability, which third-party explorers cannot index. Developers must transition their APIs before the deadline.
What this means: This is neutral for ZKsync as it reduces external dependencies and strengthens protocol-level coordination, which could improve developer experience long-term. However, it creates a short-term migration task for projects reliant on Etherscan's tools.
2. Deprecate ZKsync Lite Network (2026)
Overview: The team announced a planned, orderly deprecation of ZKsync Lite (formerly v1.0) in 2026 (TradingView). Launched in 2020 as a payments and NFT rollup, it now processes under 200 daily operations. About $50 million in user funds remains bridged; withdrawals to Ethereum L1 will stay functional. A detailed migration timeline is expected in early 2026.
What this means: This is bullish for ZKsync as it consolidates resources and user activity onto the more advanced ZKsync Era and the ZK Stack ecosystem. It signals maturation but carries a minor risk if user migration is poorly communicated or executed.
3. Advance Privacy & RWA Roadmap (2026)
Overview: The 2026 roadmap, published on 13 January 2026, prioritizes turning the privacy engine Prividium into bank-grade infrastructure and enabling native real-world asset (RWA) tokenization (CoinMarketCap). It also focuses on elastic hardware scaling and paymaster features for seamless enterprise integration. The ZK Stack will evolve to foster a collaborative network of application chains.
What this means: This is bullish for ZK because successful enterprise adoption could drive substantial network usage and fee revenue, which is linked to the ZK token's new economic utility. The main risk is execution delay, given past timeline slippage.
Conclusion
ZKsync's 2026 path involves cutting legacy systems, doubling down on institutional privacy, and capturing the RWA narrative—a clear pivot from foundational tech to scalable production. How will the migration from Lite and the success of Prividium impact the network's total value locked and token demand in the coming quarters?