Privacy token Zcash (ZEC) climbed past $570 this week, with monthly gains topping 110% after a major crypto fund disclosed a sizable position.
ZEC Rally Catalyst
ZEC surged nearly 30% on Tuesday to $543 in Asian trading hours, according to CoinDesk. The token then peaked near $603 on Wednesday before settling around $570, per CoinGecko data.
The rally followed a disclosure by Multicoin Capital, whose co-founder Tushar Jain said at Consensus Miami that the firm had been building a "significant position" in ZEC since February.
The price spike triggered roughly $62 million in futures liquidations, mostly hitting short sellers.
Open interest in ZEC contracts surged 40% to $1.31 billion in 24 hours.
Zcash's market capitalization climbed above $9.3 billion, pushing the token past Monero (XMR) to become the largest privacy-focused cryptocurrency.
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Multicoin Thesis
Jain framed the bet around growing concerns over wealth seizures and financial surveillance. He pointed to California Initiative 25-0024, a proposed 5% tax on residents holding over $1 billion in net worth.
He argued on X that Bitcoin (BTC) resists protocol-level freezes but still leaves visible holdings exposed to wealth taxes.
Multicoin called ZEC the cleanest way to express that thesis in public markets.
The firm's stance marks a sharp pivot from its 2019 view, when it argued privacy was a feature rather than a standalone product worth buying.
About 30% of circulating ZEC now sits in shielded addresses, a record level, reported Fortune. Analysts say the figure aligns the move with adoption rather than pure speculation.
Recent Privacy Surge
Zcash had already gained traction in late 2025 after endorsements from BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, AngelList's Naval Ravikant, and Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz. The token jumped from roughly $50 in mid-September 2025 to over $700 by mid-November.
An Apr. 23 listing on Robinhood widened retail access, while Grayscale's pending spot Zcash exchange-traded fund application has fueled additional speculation. The Zcash Open Development Lab also plans to roll out quantum-recoverable wallets within a month.
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