Zcash miner Fortitude taps former Hut 8 CEO to lead ahead of public listing
Reported by Cointelegraph · AI-assisted summary by ChikoCorp AI News Desk
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Summary
Fortitude Mining has appointed Jaime Leverton, former CEO of Hut 8, as its new chief executive ahead of its planned public listing through a merger with HeartSciences. Leverton will take over from Andrea Childs on September 21, with Childs moving to chief operating officer. Fortitude is a Zcash-focused miner that produced about 28% of the Zcash network’s output in the first half of 2026 and is aiming to go public on Nasdaq under the ticker TUDE.
Why it matters
The source connects Fortitude’s leadership change and public listing to its significant role in Zcash mining and expansion plans, such as purchasing new mining machines to increase hashrate. The public listing could increase visibility and capital for the company. The source also highlights the wider relevance of Zcash's rally and growing interest from investors like Paradigm, positioning privacy technology as increasingly important.
Key context
Fortitude has mined Zcash since 2019 and expanded into a vertically integrated mining platform in 2025. It operates power capacity sites across several U.S. states and recently made a major equipment purchase to boost mining performance. Jaime Leverton’s previous experience includes leading Hut 8 through its own merger and Nasdaq listing. Zcash itself has seen substantial price gains recently, supported by institutional investment and increased interest in privacy-focused cryptocurrencies.
Key numbers and entities
Fortitude mined 72,696 ZEC in H1 2026, accounting for about 28% of the network’s production. The company reported $20.9 million in revenue for Q2 2026. It operates over 60 MW of power across seven U.S. sites and agreed to buy 9,000 Bitmain Antminer Z15 Pro units for about 7.56 GSol/s. Zcash (ZEC) token is trading around $1,424, up about 185% in 30 days and 2,600% over one year. Privacy coins are up 213% over Bitcoin’s October 2025 peak as of September 6, with ZEC representing 62% of the privacy sector’s market cap. Fortitude is wholly owned by Digital Currency Group. Paradigm co-founder Matt Huang is an investor in Zcash and its open development lab.
What remains unclear
The exact valuation and terms of the merger between Fortitude and HeartSciences are not specified. Details about Fortitude’s future strategic plans beyond equipment purchases and public listing are absent. The source does not provide information on potential regulatory challenges or market risks related to the company’s expansion or listing.