As Firo turns 9 years old, we’re not just celebrating a birthday, we’re celebrating the dedication of the community, the resilience of the project, and the progress we’ve made together. From our early days as Zcoin to becoming Firo, we’ve stayed true to one mission: empowering people with financial privacy and building tools that put control back in their hands.
Looking Back at the Past Year
This past year has been filled with milestones, innovations, and community-driven growth.
Spark Names - One of the most exciting milestones this past year was the launch of Spark Names. This feature makes it easier for users to interact with Firo’s privacy ecosystem by allowing them to register simple, human-readable identifiers instead of relying on long, complex Spark addresses. Much like usernames, Spark Names improve accessibility and usability while still inheriting the full privacy protections of Lelantus Spark. By lowering the barrier for everyday use, Spark Names are helping to bridge the gap between powerful privacy technology and user-friendly digital cash.
Power Up Privacy donated 574 XMR to the Firo Team to support our mission and is continuing to donate further funds. These funds will go directly towards strengthening Firo’s development, advancing privacy research, and driving awareness initiatives in the broader ecosystem. A heartfelt thank you to Power Up Privacy for believing in our work and contributing to the growth of privacy technologies. It is the commitment of supporters like you, along with the tireless efforts of the Firofam, that keeps us moving forward.
WizardSwap became the first swap provider to integrate Spark addresses and also Instant-Send. This means users can now swap privately and almost instantly with WizardSwap, enjoying Firo’s full privacy protections without needing extra steps. We are seeing strong swap volumes primarily people swapping from XMR into FIRO.
The partnership with Confidential Layer, a non-custodial bridge that enables seamless asset transfers between public blockchains and privacy-preserving blockchains, allows users to move assets securely across chains while retaining the option of privacy when they need it. This is significant because it opens the door to greater interoperability. By connecting Firo’s privacy layer with the broader blockchain ecosystem, this partnership strengthens our vision of making privacy not just a feature, but a standard. It bridges the gap between transparent and private economies, empowering users to choose confidentiality without sacrificing accessibility or usability.
Firo attended Monerokon 2025 in Prague, where we were one of the few privacy projects with a dedicated booth. The reception was overwhelmingly positive, with many attendees from the Monero community recognizing Firo as “one of the legit ones.” It was encouraging to see so much interest at our booth, by far one of the most visited. and we look forward to fostering stronger relationships with the Monero community and beyond.
At ETHDam III, we explored how privacy coins like Firo can integrate into mainstream adoption without compromising their core values. The talk addressed common myths around privacy coins and highlighted practical solutions for shaping a more private future. Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ty50kXR–Y8
Biconomy Exchange listed Firo with support for Spark address withdrawals. This makes Biconomy the second centralized exchange (first being NonKYC.io with full Spark deposits and withdrawal support) to enable users to withdraw directly to a Spark address, bringing the benefits of Firo’s cutting-edge privacy protocol to a wider audience.
One of the most inspiring milestones this year comes directly from the community. A dedicated member in Syria has begun setting up an office to educate and onboard people to Firo, providing hands-on guidance about financial privacy and how to use cryptocurrency in their daily lives. In Syria, citizens are only allowed to withdraw around 500,000 Syrian Pounds (~38 USD) a week from their bank and still face a lot of stigma despite sanctions being lifted. Privacy crypto like Firo provides a practical solution to ease value transfer among ordinary Syrians.
Beyond education, real-world adoption is taking shape on the ground. In Syria, one of the largest stores in Homs Governorate, Al Dhahik Commercial Complex that sells essential goods from solar panels to appliances, a household appliance store, a pharmacy, and a grocery shop are now accepting FIRO as payment. These businesses are helping to create a practical ecosystem where everyday needs can be met using private digital cash.
A Community That Makes It Possible
At the heart of Firo’s journey is the community. Whether it’s miners securing the network, masternodes operators, serving on the Community Fund Committee, testing new features, helping newcomers, creating Spark Names, or simply spreading the word, every contribution has strengthened the ecosystem. Firo also wouldn’t be here without the support of our partners, who have worked alongside us to advance privacy technology and adoption. To all who have stayed with us, believed in what we do, and contributed in countless ways, old and new, we thank you deeply.
Looking Forward
As we move into our 10th year, Firo’s mission remains clear: ensuring financial privacy is accessible to all. The road ahead is filled with exciting developments that will push Firo’s technology and usability even further.
Lelantus Spark remains at the core of Firo’s privacy technology, and we will continue to refine and strengthen it. This means ongoing upgrades for performance, security, and usability, ensuring it remains the gold standard in blockchain privacy.
Spark Assets - Nearing completion, Spark Assets will allow users to issue their own privacy-preserving assets. These assets inherit the same protections as Lelantus Spark, including the ability to hide asset types ensuring full confidentiality. Importantly, all assets - including FIRO itself - contribute to a shared anonymity set, further strengthening privacy for everyone.
Integration into Enkrypt - a multi-asset Web3 browser extension wallet, with full support for Spark features. This will make it even easier for users to access Firo’s privacy technology without installing or downloading an application.
Curve Trees - An innovative technique for efficient membership proofs that supports a global anonymity set. This upgrade will substantially improve privacy, scalability, verification speed, and proof size, making Spark even more robust and efficient.
And these are just some of the improvements on the horizon. With community support and ongoing innovation, Firo will continue leading the way in financial privacy while expanding its reach and usability.
Closing Thoughts
Thank you to every member of the Firofam for being part of this journey. Nine years is a huge milestone in crypto, and it’s only possible because of the strength of this community and the vision we share. Here’s to the next chapter, and to building a future where financial privacy is the norm, not the exception.
Happy 9th Birthday, Firo!