Zcash overtakes Monero by market capitalisation

Zcash’s value tops Monero as market cap passes $6.2bn.

The market capitalisation of Zcash has exceeded $6.2bn. By this measure, the coin has overtaken the near-perennial leader among privacy cryptocurrencies — Monero — whose market value stands at $5.9bn.

Remarkably, as recently as September ZEC’s market cap was about $800m. 

Over the past 24 hours the asset’s price has risen 7%; over the week, 49%; and over the month, more than 91%. At the time of writing Zcash trades around $387 — for the first time since 2018. 

XMR has fared more modestly. Over the past 24 hours its price fell 2.3%, but it is up 8.8% over 30 days. At the time of writing the coin trades at $323. 

Why is Zcash rising? 

One of the early catalysts was the launch of the Zcash Trust by Grayscale. Demand may also have been spurred by legislative initiatives that threaten user privacy. 

Matt Henderson, a former product manager at Near Protocol, also says the recognition by experts of the project’s reliability and technological maturity has buoyed the cryptocurrency’s performance.

A Monero $XMR holder who believes the $ZEC flipping is due to “VCs and insiders” asked for my theory:

This isn’t a theory. They are facts:

1. Surge in privacy concerns. (Increasing KYC/AML/SoF requirements everywhere, EU wants to pre-scan your Signal messages, etc.)
2. Smartest…

— Matt Henderson (@dafacto) October 31, 2025

Even some bitcoin maximalists call Zcash an “improved version” of the first cryptocurrency. In their words, the privacy coin is finally ready for mass use. 

“Initially the project offered cutting-edge privacy technology, but then the team had to adapt it for everyday use cases. Until recently it was technically impossible to make shielded transactions in mobile wallets due to high computational requirements. The situation changed with the arrival of the Zashi and Edge wallets,” one user noted. 

Another driver is rising liquidity, Henderson stressed. Earlier, the volume of shielded transactions in the privacy token reached a record 4.9m ZEC. Helius Kab CEO Mert Mumtaz called the trend “one of the craziest in the history of cryptocurrencies”.

Zcash has received backing from many well-known figures in the crypto industry. 

Outlook 

Mumtaz believes the privacy coin will overtake XRP by market capitalisation.

In the long term, former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes expects Zcash to rally to $10,000, and in the short term to $400. 

Let me jinx this…$ZEC to $400 and beyond. Happy Halloween Bitches! pic.twitter.com/SQ95OmlfSJ

— Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) October 31, 2025

According to a researcher known as Cal, further upside in ZEC requires a rise in bitcoin. If the first cryptocurrency resumes its ascent, Zcash could reach $1,000 by the end of the fourth quarter. 

zcash is at all cycle high. been sharing $zec since it was at $100 this cycle. been a long term holder since 2017-2018. strong belief if bitcoin continues to rally easily $1000 before end of q4 pic.twitter.com/7UgSnkL8U5

— Cal (@nftpho) October 31, 2025

Some users note that “buying ZEC at $380 is like buying bitcoin” at the same price. This suggests market participants are confident in the coin’s potential. 

“Every holder of the first cryptocurrency will look like a genius by 2030 if they invest at least 1% of their portfolio in ZEC today,” users also say. 

Not everyone shares the optimism. Earlier, CryptoQuant analyst Burak Keshmechi pointed to the short-lived nature of ZEC’s current move.

On October 28, the Zcash project turned nine years old.