Zcash (ZEC) is in strong bullish, with the price marking a +150% in the last seven days. This trend confirms a great return to the demand for the privacy crypto, its zk-SNARK technology, as well as the launch of the Grayscale Zcash Trust.
Zcash: the price of ZEC soars by +150% in a week thanks to the demand for privacy coins
Zcash (ZEC) is experiencing a great moment of appreciation, with its price seemingly soaring over 150% in a week.
Specifically, the privacy crypto has risen from the price of $54 seven days ago to a high of over $156 on October 2nd. At the time of writing, ZEC is valued at $138, which is still more than double what it was throughout September.
A significant price surge that is still very far from its ATH recorded in 2016 of $3,193. Yet, ZEC’s level over the past year seems to have remained below $75.
The current Zcash rally appears to be accompanied by a growth in trading volume as well, specifically +1,150% to 292 million dollars.
Not only that, but also protected transactions, a distinctive feature of ZEC in terms of privacy, appear to have increased by 15.5% on a monthly basis.
This data confirms a strong return of demand for privacy crypto from users, rather than purely speculative inflows.
Behind the rally of ZEC, there seem to be two important events: a renewed interest in its zk-SNARK privacy technology and institutional interest in the launch of the Grayscale Zcash Trust.
Zcash (ZEC): the zk-SNARK privacy technology and the launch of the Grayscale Trust
It had been a while since there was talk of the renowned zk-SNARK technology, yet now it seems there is a surge of interest that has pushed Zcash’s market cap to over 1.8 billion dollars.
zk-SNARK (or the zero knowledge proof) is the underlying technology of Zcash, meaning that “nothing is revealed except the truth of the statement.” In practice, zk-SNARK implies that between two parties in a transaction, each is able to prove to the other that they have a specific set of information, without revealing what that information is. With zk-SNARK, it is possible to prove through a mathematical proof the possession of a password, without ever having to reveal it.
This peculiarity, along with the fact that Zcash is originally derived from Bitcoin’s codebase, offers both transparent and shielded transactions, attracting users who desire the option of privacy.
On this subject, the renowned entrepreneur Naval Ravikant wrote the following on X:
“Bitcoin is insurance against fiat currency. ZCash is insurance against Bitcoin.”
Beyond the renewed interest in zk-SNARK privacy, it seems that the new Grayscale Zcash Trust has also contributed to engaging institutional investors, increasing inflows to ZEC.
“@Zcash is similar to Bitcoin in its structure. Zcash $ZEC was created from the original Bitcoin code, but it uses privacy technology that encrypts transaction information and allows users to protect their assets. Grayscale Zcash Trust is open for private placement to eligible accredited investors.”
The integrations of ZEC and zk-SNARK
Remaining in this rally period, it is interesting to note that among other Zcash developments was its integration on THORSwap on September 30.
“@Zcash now supported on @THORSwap! Electronic Cash meets Thunder cross-chain. Seamlessly swap native $ZEC with Bitcoin @ethereum @solana @trondao @BNBCHAIN @Base @Arbitrum @Dogecoin #XRPL and more. Proudly @SwapKitPowered via @Maya_Protocol and @NEARProtocol Intents.”
Speaking instead of the zk-SNARK technology, its integrations into other blockchains occurred shortly after its launch, back in 2018 and 2019.
For example, Ethereum had included the technology in the blockchain for some transactions in 2018, with Vitalik Buterin expressing enthusiasm for the type of privacy offered.
In 2019, the Tron testnet also implemented the zk-SNARKS invented by the developers of Zcash. In the same year, the technology was integrated by Tezos.