ZEC repeats its 2018 record, breaking above $700

ZCash (ZEC) is not ready yet to give up on its rally. The coin, now traded on multiple decentralized venues, broke its record from 2018. 

ZEC broke another daily record, with no significant pullbacks. The privacy coin broke above $700 for the first time since its 2018 rally. With this, ZEC becomes one of the few legacy coins to repeat their record from one of the biggest altcoin bull markets. 

ZEC expanded by more than 32% over the past day, extending its series of daily new highs. The coin’s rally has been criticized as unsustainable, but for now remains supported by hype. ZEC peaked above $713, following a brief dip closer to $600 over the past day. The Binance peg version of ZEC, trading on Pancake Swap, saw a price premium. The token traded as high as $737.

The privacy coin also seems entirely unaffected by the fluctuations of BTC or bearish expectations for other assets. Even at peak prices, ZEC is becoming more prominent and expanding its mindshare. 

One of the most prominent whales on Hyperliquid also closed all ZEC shorts with small gains, just below the liquidation price of $727. The whale closed the position just in time, as ZEC later traded above $728.

The asset has once again gone parabolic, suggesting the rally may be reaching its peak. However, predictions of prices above $1K and even up to $10,000 are still ongoing, potentially driving ZEC to a higher range. The asset may also expand with mainstream interest. 

ZEC rally spread to privacy coins

ZEC is now ahead of other privacy coins, which still attempt to copy its climb. Those assets still managed to expand, with XMR rising to $370. The ZEC rally may spark a new narrative, affecting other coins and tokens.

LTC also rallied vertically to $102, erasing all losses from the previous days. LTC bounced from lows of $85 within minutes, showing unprecedented hype and enthusiasm for an old asset. As a whole, privacy coins expanded their value to over $30B. During this expansion cycle, the assets rarely heard talk of delistings or low liquidity. 

Crypto influencers are now trying to reinvent privacy not as a way to hide the origin of funds, but to offer verification without disclosing all user data and transaction history. 

ZEC open interest pushes close to $1B

ZEC derivative trading also expanded by over 30% in the past day. Open interest rose to over $970M, after years of low activity. On Hyperliquid, over 59% of whales are long on ZEC. The biggest long position has a notional value of $35.5M, with unrealized gains of $10.83M.

The market’s funding rates are deep in the red, while holders of long positions are receiving fees. Short positions are at around 54%, down from their previous level of over 60%. In the past weeks, ZEC caused multiple short liquidations or incurred expenses for anyone attempting to predict the end of the rally.

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