Zcash surges on privacy fears as traders worry about artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and financial surveillance. The privacy-focused cryptocurrency has spiked by more than 70% over the past week.
On Friday, May 1, Zcash traded at about $346 . As of Friday, it has settled around $564, according to TradingView.
Why Zcash surges on privacy fears right now
Most of latest reports by different crypto agencies are stating that traders have begun focusing on privacy projects. The reason? Broader concerns about AI, quantum computing, and financial surveillance.
In addition, Zcash got another boost. Tushar Jain, co‑founder of Multicoin Capital, said on Wednesday that his firm has “built a significant position” in Zcash since February.
Institutions may seek private assets
Zcash is one of the most prominent privacy cryptocurrencies. Its main rival is Monero. Jain said Zcash is an attractive investment because “institutions will increasingly seek private assets to protect themselves” from what he called a “political trend to seize private wealth.”
Several crypto firms have also launched new privacy features recently. For example, Polygon introduced private stablecoin payments on Sunday. Aptos Labs’ privacy feature, Confidential APT, went live on the mainnet in April. It conceals token balances and transfer amounts.
Santiment points to lack of government trust
The market intelligence platform Santiment said on Wednesday that Zcash is “emphatically rebounding.” Fear of missing out and social media mentions spiked along with its price.
Santiment pointed to a lack of government trust as a possible catalyst. “The crowd is increasingly viewing privacy-focused assets as a hedge against growing surveillance concerns, tighter exchange regulations and expanding AI-driven data tracking across financial platforms,” the firm said.
“At the same time, lower market caps across many privacy coins have traders eyeing them as high-upside momentum plays during this mild altcoin rally crypto has seen so far in May,” Santiment added.
Zcash rally could be short-lived
Privacy was a major investment theme in 2025. Privacy tokens surged last year despite a broader market downturn.
Zcash nearly crossed $700 in November That was its highest price since 2018. Meanwhile, Monero reached a new all‑time high of $797.73 in January.
However, neither coin held onto those gains. Swyftx’s Hundal warned that the recent rally could also be short‑lived.
“Zcash’s move has some hallmarks of a narrative rotation into privacy coins,” Hundal said. “I’d be careful calling it a clean fundamental repricing just yet. We need more time to see how durable investor interest is.”