Overview
- ZEC climbed to roughly $388 and a market capitalization around $6.2 billion, briefly overtaking Monero as the largest privacy coin by value.
- Shielded balances reached about 4.5–4.94 million ZEC, or roughly 28–30% of supply, indicating renewed use of Zcash’s privacy features and a tighter liquid float.
- Futures open interest hit an all-time high near $515 million and roughly $65 million in recent liquidations—mostly shorts—helped fuel a squeeze.
- Access and development catalysts included MoonPay’s on-chain swap support for ZEC and a public alpha of a new zero-knowledge architecture aimed at faster, easier shielded transactions.
- High-profile endorsements, including Arthur Hayes reiterating a $10,000 target, amplified attention, while exchange restrictions on shielded transfers and AML constraints keep volatility risks elevated.