Seeking Ideas and Feedback for Zec Map

[Batuhan]

The development of the application has already started. A budget of around $10,000 has been allocated for this project, and we have begun working with app developers.

---

What else could be added to this app?

We would really appreciate feedback and ideas from the community.
Your suggestions will help us make Zec Map more powerful and useful.

Also:

Would you use this app?
What features would be essential for you?

---

Local Merchant Support

If you know any local merchants in your country or city that accept $ZEC payments, please share them with us.

We will verify and add them to the app to help grow the Zcash ecosystem together.

---

We’re looking forward to your feedback

Hello everyone,

I would like to share a project concept called Zec Map and get feedback from the community.

Zec Map will be a global mobile application (Android / iOS) that lists merchants and services accepting Zcash ($ZEC) as a payment method.

Core Concept

The app will help users discover real-world and online places where they can spend ZEC. It will include:

• Local businesses worldwide accepting $ZEC (cafes, restaurants, shops, etc.)
• VPN services that accept $ZEC payments
• Mobile wallets supporting $ZEC
• E-commerce websites where $ZEC can be used for purchases

---

User System

• Simple registration with only a username
• Optional profile image
• Social verification system:
  • Users can link their X (Twitter) account
  • The official Zec Map X account will contact the user for verification
  • Once verified, a “Verified” badge will be added to the profile

---

User Reward System

To encourage real-world usage of Zcash:

• If a user makes a payment using $ZEC in any physical location (e.g. coffee shop, restaurant)
• And uploads proof (anonymized image of the payment)
• They will receive 1% cashback in $ZEC

---

Merchant Ranking System

Businesses accepting $ZEC will be ranked based on activity:

• Each time a merchant accepts a ZEC payment and uploads proof (with privacy protection), they earn 1 point
• At the end of each month, top merchants receive rewards:
  • $100 in ZEC
  • $50 in ZEC
  • $25 in ZEC

Additionally:

• First 50 listed businesses on the platform will receive $20 in ZEC as a welcome reward

---

Donation / Fundraising Feature

The app will also include a donation section:

• Users or organizations can create fundraising campaigns
• Each campaign will require admin approval before going live
• This feature aims to support real-world help and community-driven initiatives

[Batuhan]

The app’s primary language will be English.

It will also support:

• Spanish
• German
• French
• Turkish

If there are any other languages you would like to see added, please let us know.

[dismad]

In general I LOVE maps so the idea is awesome, and integrating local business is smart.

@Batuhan

Social verification system:

• Users can link their X (Twitter) account
• The official Zec Map X account will contact the user for verification
• Once verified, a “Verified” badge will be added to the profile

Is this opt in? What about other social networks?

@Batuhan

Each time a merchant accepts a ZEC payment and uploads proof (with privacy protection), they earn 1 point

Can you expand on how this will work?

[Batuhan]

Hello Dismad, thank you for your questions.

“Is this opt in? What about other social networks?”

When you enter the app, you will be able to register automatically by simply choosing a username, for example “Dismad.” However, if you would like to have a verification badge on your profile, we will manually verify your X account or Discord account.

The reason for this is to help prevent scams or other issues when we introduce new features to the app in the future.

“Can you expand on how this will work?”

At the beginning, this system will rely somewhat on trust, because our vision is built around privacy. In the first stage, we plan to allocate a certain budget to encourage businesses to increase the number of customers they serve who pay with ZEC.

At the moment, we do not know exactly how many local businesses currently accept Zcash as a payment method. The main goal is to increase that number through incentives. We may experiment with different mechanisms in the future, but for now, this seems to be the most practical approach.

[1337bytes]

I’m working on a Zcash merchant map also, might be worth collaborating to pool resources if you’re interested. OpenStreetMaps already has tags for merchants that accept BTC, etc. Probably worth adding merchants that accept ZEC to OpenStreetMaps and using the same metadata system.

[Batuhan]

Yes, this collaboration could be very valuable for us. On the application side, I am considering a different approach: manually adding businesses and handling their verification process.

In the first phase, the app will include the business name, country, full address, and contact details. In the second development phase, when users click on a business, they will be able to see its exact location through an integrated map.

The most important part is how many local businesses we can find. For this reason, I have already started researching gradually. I am also expecting support from the community. If anyone knows businesses in different countries that accept Zcash payments, I would greatly appreciate their help…

[daira]

Why a separate Android/iOS app, rather than a backend service that can be exposed as an app, a website, a wallet integration, etc.?

• Users can link their X (Twitter) account

X is not a generic example of a social network. X is specifically an example of a platform taken over by a white supremacist, with moderation policies and overall politics that are hostile to people of colour, trans people, migrants, disabled people, etc. I would strongly encourage you to either support Bluesky/atproto or drop the social authentication element.

[1337bytes]

@daira

Why a separate Android/iOS app, rather than a backend service that can be exposed as an app, a website, a wallet integration, etc.?

This is what I’m working on currently – REST API wrapper on top of OpenStreetMaps compatible data. Aligning with the existing work done in the Bitcoin community for example is key rather than starting from scratch. I feel that there should be an open data layer that can be integrated into any independent frontend such as Zec Map.

@daira

X is not a generic example of a social network.

Not to mention that most physical merchants are on Instagram rather than Twitter, and Twitter is hostile when it comes to any sort of API access. Mastodon and Bluesky are much better for this and we should encourage merchants to switch over to them. Bluesky/OpenStreetMaps integration? Google Maps appears to be closing access to photos and reviews for users that are signed out of Google.

[Batuhan]

Tomorrow I will share some technical details about the app here, and afterwards I will present our roadmap to you all.

First of all, there may have been a translation mistake regarding the X integration. At the initial stage, I will not implement any social media integrations. What I mean is this: you will be able to sign in to the app simply by choosing a username. No other verification will be required.

However, if you would like to have a blue checkmark next to your profile inside the app, we will need to contact you through any social platform such as Instagram, Telegram, or Discord to confirm that you are a real person.

There are two main reasons for this:

1. To keep privacy as a priority and ensure that no one has to share any personal information with us.
2. To prevent possible scams and manage the process securely through manual verification.

As Zbase and Zcash Türkiye, we already have a team of around 10 people. Because of this, manual verifications and manually adding businesses will not be a problem for us.

We are currently at the startup stage and building an infrastructure that will allow integrations in the future. That is why we are trying to move forward step by step in the most beneficial way possible.

[Kenbak]

I agree with @daira, backend service first, frontends second. An open merchant data layer that wallets and apps can query is more useful than a standalone app.

We’d be open to exposing a discovery endpoint from CipherPay if there’s a shared standard to build against. Opt-in only, merchants should choose whether to be listed. Privacy by default, visibility by choice.

[the_zero]

A New Vision from Korea

Headline: Hello from Korea! A New Node Operator’s “Unfiltered” Take on the Future of ZEC

Hello everyone! I’ve just kicked off my journey as a ZEC node operator here in Korea. I’ve been following the discussions here closely, and I wanted to share a few thoughts. In Korea, we have a saying: “New challenges are always right,” and “If you do nothing, nothing happens.” I fully recognize that the blockchain industry and the circulation of coins are deeply interconnected and vital. However, I have a personal “hot take”: I believe we are looking at coins too much through the narrow lens of “payment infrastructure.”

The world we are about to encounter will be fundamentally different from the one we know. If we try to use ZEC—which has such unique purposes and functions—in the exact same way we use government-issued currencies like the Dollar, Yen, Won, or Yuan, it might be proof that we aren’t quite ready for the new era yet.

Think about it: Money played a different role in the Agricultural Age, the Industrial Age, and the Digital Age. So, as we witness this massive shift into a truly Digital Civilization, what kind of new dreams should we be dreaming?

Every national currency has a different value, yet people use them all in more or less the same way. Does ZEC really need to follow that same old path? ZEC is mysterious; it has a very unique quality that taps into hidden human desires. We need to discover a completely different way to utilize it.

We need to think—and then think some more—about how ZEC will be perceived by people in this changing world.

(Note: Except for the translation itself, this post was written with 0% AI assistance—100% human thought!)

안녕하세요. 저는 한국에서 이제 막 ZEC 노드 운영을 시작한 사람입니다. 당신의 게시물을 주의깊게 살펴보았습니다. 새로운 도전은 언제나 옳다. 아무것도 하지 않으면 아무일도 일어나지 않는다는 얘기를 한국사람들이 즐겨 말합니다. 난 블록체인 산업에 코인의 유통과 큰 연관성이 있고 중요하다는 것을 이해하고있다. 다만 내 개인적인 의견은 이것이다. 우리는 코인을 너무 결제 중심 인프라의 관점에서 바라보고 있다는 것이다. 우리가 앞으로 마주할 세상은 이전과 완전히 다를 것이다. 우리가 지금 사용하는 달러, 엔화, 원화, 위안화 같은 정부가 발행한 화폐를 결제수단으로 사용하는 것처럼 ZEC 같은 특수한 목적과 가능을 갖고 있는 코인을 각 정부들이 발행한 기존의 화폐와 비슷한 방식으로 사용하려 한다면 이것은 우리가 새로운 세상에 적응할 준비가 덜 되었다는 증거가 될 수 있습니다. 농업문명, 산업화 문명, 디지털 문명, 이 셋의 구조 안에서 화폐가 담당하는 역할을 다소 상이하다는 것을 모두가 인정할 것이다. 그렇다면 디지털 문명의 전환기에 큰 변화를 목도하고 있는 우리들은 어떤 새로운 꿈을 꾸어야할까? 각 나라의 화폐는 서로 다른 가치를 가지고 있지만 사람들은 그 각국의 화폐를 모두 비슷한 방법으로 사용한다. 그렇다면 우리도 이 ZEC를 기존의 화폐들과 비슷한 방법으로 사용해야 할까? 이 ZEC는 신비하고 인간의 숨겨진 욕망을 자극하는 매우 독특한 성질이 있다. 우리는 이 ZEC의 또 다른 사용법을 알아내야 할 것이다. ZEC가 앞으로 우리가 마주하게 될 변화된 세상에서 사람들에 의해 어떤 관점으로 받아들여지게 될 지에 대해 우리는 고민하고 또 고민해봐야 한다. (이 글은 한글을 영어로 번역하는 일을 제외하고 AI에 의해 1%의 도움도 받지 않았습니다.)

[Batuhan]

Everyone’s feedback looks really great. As I mentioned before, the application is currently in development, and we are guiding the design process in a way that allows revisions based on feedback. OpenStreetMap integration will be implemented first, and additional integrations will be added gradually throughout the process as needed.

The planned system architecture is as follows:

Web Frontend
React + Vite will be used as the main framework. For the map system, Leaflet.js with OpenStreetMap tiles will be preferred. Zustand or TanStack Query is being considered for state management. Tailwind CSS + shadcn/ui will be used for the design system.

Mobile Application
It will be developed with Expo (React Native). For the map infrastructure, react-native-maps with a custom OSM tile provider will be used. On the styling side, NativeWind will provide Tailwind-compatible design support.

Backend (Self-hosted Supabase)
PostgreSQL + PostGIS will power advanced geolocation queries. Row Level Security (RLS) will be implemented for security. Edge Functions will handle OSM Nominatim proxy services and email triggers. Supabase Storage will be used for business images and media files.

In short, we are moving forward with a modern, scalable infrastructure designed for long-term growth.

[WebWipe]

As a comment, it would be helpful for a liveness indicator.

Many of these map sites become out of date unless the merchant manually updates the map. If there is someway to continually pull if the merchant is still around or still accepting ZEC, it would help the map stay fresh and up to date