I see some valid reasons brought up about zerocash. The fact of the matter is if you want the widest amount of acceptance from both a miner/investor level all the way up to the government you're going to need transparency. I agree with the decision that was made by the devs. Do you really think the government will let a coin run rampant if they can't ensure that it's not being used for illegal activity and/or the government isn't getting its cut? Or do you think they would be more accepting if there was transparency? I think the choice is clear.
I believe the assertion that "acceptance of government is required" to be false. Bitcoin will fulfil that role. The reality is that vertcoin cannot displace bitcoin in that role. If vertcoin does not take this initiative of privacy then another coin will. The assumption of miner acceptance and government acceptance being required at the same time will be tested sooner or later. I think it would be advantageous for vertcoin to be the first in this space. If not, it will be a missed opportunity in my view.
I think it would be ridiculous to take a chance on implementing something that has such a high probability of government interference. As much as some of us would love to have this notion that crypto currencies are completely separate from countries/governments/laws, etc., you cannot escape the fact that we are dealing with something that has monetary value. If you are benefiting, building wealth, enjoying gains, etc. at some point when you use this stuff to either purchase goods or services, or convert to the monetary format of your home country and put it in the bank, your government will expect taxes, no different than if you enjoyed financial gains from stocks or other investments. I think it would be naive to believe crypto could exist in some type of anonymous void, where governments would be powerless to come after you for non-payment of taxes. I see no difference between hiding income in Swiss bank accounts, , establishing "front" companies in the Cayman Islands for tax shelters, etc. Sure, people do that, but many people get caught. Anytime you use an exchange to buy and sell cryptos, utilize wire transfers, etc., there is already a paper trail back to you. (especially as amounts and values increase to put up more red flags) If VTC, or any other coin implements a feature that offers total anonymity, my guess is that it would be great PR, and I would anticipate the value could really be effected in a positive way for the short term. However, all it would take to come crashing down would be the involvement of governments to start getting involved with the exchanges- shutting them down, limiting their ability to conduct business with that coin, etc. At that point, I would expect the value of that coin to plummet, and many of us would be left holding the bag. Regardless of what other possible privacy features the dev's are working on now- I think zerocash is certainly not a long term feature for growth. (and yes, I would not be surprised to see another coin come forward at some point with this feature and become popular... but only time will tell if it is only a temporary success) This is one instance where I think its best to lean on the conservative side and take the safe, long term approach.
