Institutional support and rising adoption drive ZEC’s price surge and spotlight privacy coins.
Zcash (ZEC) has rocketed from $40 to $710 in under two months, pushing its market capitalization above $10 billion and placing it among the top three privacy-focused cryptocurrencies.
The surge gained momentum after BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes declared ZEC his second-largest holding after Bitcoin in his family office Maelstrom Fund’s portfolio.
Institutional interest is also climbing. Grayscale’s Zcash Trust reported a 228% increase in assets under management, now totaling $150 million, highlighting growing adoption among professional investors.
Zcash, derived from Bitcoin’s codebase, uses zero-knowledge proofs to conceal transaction details, enabling fully private transfers while allowing users to disclose information selectively when needed.
On-chain activity is also rising with shielded (private) transactions now representing over 30% of the circulating supply, a record 4.96 million ZEC. Adoption is being driven by the Zashi Wallet, Zcash Shielded Assets (ZSA), and cross-chain bridges such as “Zolana”, which connects ZEC to Solana’s ecosystem.
Privacy Coins in Context
The broader privacy coin sector is experiencing what analysts are calling a “supercycle,” with total market capitalization climbing past $43 billion, a 51% increase over the past 24 days.
Privacy-focused cryptocurrencies are now dominating conversations across X as investors reposition their portfolios amid tightening global regulations. The European Union is tightening oversight of crypto transactions and wallets through its MiCA framework and updated AML rules. In the United States, the FATF Travel Rule now requires crypto firms to track and share sender and receiver information.
Over the past 24 hours alone, among the standout performers were Zclassic (ZCL), up 66.8%, Decred (DCR), gaining 49.5%, and COTI (COTI), rising 44.5%.
Why This Matters?
Arthur Hayes’ endorsement and ZEC’s rapid surge signal rising confidence in privacy-focused cryptos,as investors look for ways to navigate tighter crypto regulations worldwide.
Dig into DailyCoin’s hottest crypto scoops today:
COTI Soars 89%, Pushing On-Chain Privacy to Spotlight
$280M XRP Shake-up: Institutional Whale’s Hidden Plan?
