Zcash tops $1,600 as privacy trade powers ZEC's surge

CoinDesk reports that Zcash has emerged as one of the best-performing tokens in the latest crypto upswing, climbing above $1,600 on Wednesday to set a new all-time high. CoinGecko data show ZEC is up 88% over the past month and more than 28% this week. Risk appetite has been improving across the market after Bitcoin briefly pushed above $87,000. Solana, XRP and Hyperliquid have also advanced in recent sessions, though their gains have trailed Zcash. David Lawant, Research Director at Anchorage Digital, told Fortune that ZEC has moved into the top ten by market capitalization since 2026, after previously ranking outside the top 80. Analysts point to renewed interest in privacy-focused activity as a key driver. Zcash's technology is designed to enable optional privacy for transactions. Unlike Bitcoin's publicly traceable ledger, Zcash can hide details such as the sender, recipient and transaction amount through zero-knowledge proofs. Supporters say the structure pairs a fixed supply with privacy on demand, an attribute attracting investors who are putting greater weight on confidentiality as more funds shift on-chain. Institutional interest has also increased. Multicoin Capital disclosed a significant ZEC position earlier this year. Cypherpunk Technologies, a publicly traded firm backed by the Winklevoss brothers, has continued adding to its ZEC holdings and has invested in Zcash mining operations. The moves underscore a view among some investors that Zcash offers both hard-capped supply characteristics and privacy-oriented payments. Anchorage Digital said Zcash still embodies the privacy and autonomy ethos associated with early crypto, which continues to resonate with parts of the market. The rally comes alongside a broader rebound in digital assets. After the U.S. Treasury's August announcement of increased purchases of long-dated securities, improved liquidity expectations helped push crypto assets back to multi-month highs. CoinDesk also noted that typical headwinds for risk assets—including the U.S. Congress failing to pass the CLARITY Act on crypto market structure, Federal Reserve rate hikes and the usual September seasonal softness—did not materially slow the move, reinforcing outsized gains in more price-elastic tokens.