The privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash (ZEC) has captured significant market attention following a dramatic price increase over the past month. Data from October 24, 2025, revealed that ZEC had climbed by 490% in 30 days, including a 30% rise in a single 24-hour period. This performance pushed the coin’s market capitalization past the $5 billion mark for the first time.

BitMEX Founder’s Tweet Ignites Rally

The primary catalyst for the recent surge appears to be a social media post from Arthur Hayes, founder of the BitMEX exchange. On October 26, 2025, Hayes suggested that ZEC could potentially reach a price of $10,000 per coin. His comment triggered an immediate market reaction, with ZEC’s price jumping from $272 to $355 within hours, outperforming all other top-50 crypto assets.

Hayes has a track record of influencing market sentiment. His previous comments about Hyperliquid’s HYPE token at the WebX 2025 Tokyo conference were followed by a 4% price increase for that asset, demonstrating the weight his opinions carry among investors.

Renewed Interest in Privacy Coins

The rally has extended beyond Zcash, sparking renewed interest in the broader privacy coin sector. Monero (XMR), another leading privacy-focused asset, saw its price increase by 3.6% to $346.55. This occurred even as Monero faces regulatory headwinds, including delistings from major exchanges like Binance and OKX.

Assets like Zcash and Monero are designed to protect user anonymity by obscuring transaction details such as sender, receiver, and amount, often using technologies like zero-knowledge proofs. Analysts suggest their appeal is growing amid rising concerns over digital surveillance and data privacy.

Market Psychology and Future Outlook

The sharp price movement was amplified by strong social sentiment, including a wave of Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) among traders. The influence of a prominent figure like Hayes was enough to trigger a significant influx of investment, highlighting the role of market psychology in the volatile altcoin sector.

While Hayes’s $10,000 prediction—a target over 28 times its recent price—has generated excitement, its feasibility remains highly speculative. Achieving such a valuation would depend on overcoming significant hurdles, including regulatory challenges, securing wider institutional adoption, and ensuring sufficient liquidity on exchanges. For now, Zcash has firmly re-established itself as a project to watch in the global crypto market.

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