Zcash (ZEC) experienced a dramatic surge of 40%-69% over the past week, extending its weekly gains to 60% and delivering an 110% return over the past 30 days. According to reports from CoinDesk, the rally generated massive trading activity with volume crossing $1.3 billion in a single day. The surge triggered approximately $46.7 million in total liquidations across roughly 5,000 traders, with nearly $40 million coming from short positions while longs lost just over $6.7 million. This made ZEC-tracked futures the second-highest liquidations behind bitcoin in an unusual move for the privacy coin, marking one of the largest wipeouts in the market during that period.
The price surge coincided with Multicoin Capital's disclosure that it has been accumulating a significant ZEC position since February. As reported by CoinDesk, fund partner Tushar Jain framed the investment thesis around California's proposed 5% wealth tax on residents with over $1 billion in net worth, including unrealized gains. The initiative is projected to raise around $100 billion if passed. Jain argued that while bitcoin remains censorship-resistant, transparent blockchain balances can still be seized through wealth taxes, making ZEC's shielded transactions more appealing as a private asset. The thesis appears to have resonated with a market already leaning toward privacy concerns, with growing worries around wallet tracking, sanctions, and onchain monitoring.
According to CoinDesk Research, roughly 30% of all circulating ZEC now sits in shielded addresses, representing approximately 5 million coins out of 16.7 million total supply. This represents a significant increase from 8% in early 2024, as reported by CoinDesk. The shielded pool uses zero-knowledge cryptography to hide transaction details such as sender, recipient, and amount, with public ZEC transactions remaining flat at around 8,500 per day. The growth in shielded supply aligns this price move more with real adoption than past speculative rallies, as analysts note that actual activity is occurring inside the shielded pool where transactions don't show up on standard counters. The move in Zcash came down to one clear catalyst: Multicoin's disclosed position, which sits at the center of the growing conversation around financial surveillance and privacy demand.
ZEC currently trades at $543, representing a 1,400% increase year-to-date, though it remains below its November 2025 high near $750. As reported by CoinDesk, the token still has room for extension if current demand continues, with the next resistance zone identified at $600 to $650 where ZEC consolidated through late 2025. The rally marks a sharp turnaround for a token that had traded quietly for much of the past year, with buying pressure surging across both spot and derivatives markets within hours of Multicoin's disclosure. Market participants will be watching whether the shielded pool continues expanding alongside the price move, as past ZEC rallies have coincided with shielded supply growth that lagged the move, suggesting speculative participation. The current rally occurs alongside record-high shielded supply, which represents a closer on-chain signature of actual adoption compared to previous price movements.
