Dec 9, 2025
Markets
Zcash Founder Zooko Wilcox Joins ZEC Treasury Firm as Privacy Coin Surges
Cypherpunk Technologies Inc. announced Tuesday that Zooko Wilcox, founder of prominent privacy coin Zcash and former CEO of Electric Coin Company, has joined the Zcash treasury firm as a strategic advisor. The move preceded a sizable surge in Cypherpunk’s stock price Tuesday, all while Zcash itself continues to rebound after a recent sell-off. Cypherpunk said in a press release that Wilcox will guide the company's development of self-sovereign digital systems focused on privacy and freedom. Cyph...
Dec 8, 2025
Technology
Zcash Founder Helped to Create This Anonymous Phone Service
A new anonymous phone service has launched in the United States, enabling consumers to sign up for mobile coverage by providing nothing more than their zip codes. Named Phreeli, the new mobile carrier requires no other personal info from customers, who can pay their monthly bill without sharing credit card or bank data with the company. Zooko Wilcox, co-founder of privacy coin Zcash, acted as a consultant on the project, advising Phreeli on how to apply zero-knowledge proofs to bill paying. “Pho...
Dec 2, 2025
Markets
Privacy Coins Lose Steam as ZCash, Monero, and Dash Follow Crypto Market Pullback
Leading privacy coins have slumped, shedding recent gains as they fall in tandem with a broader crypto market downturn. ZCash is down 8.5% over the past 24 hours, while Monero has fallen 5.4% and Dash has shed 3.9%, according to CoinGecko data, while the privacy coins sector as a whole has dropped by 15.4%. The declines mark a sharp reversal for a sector that saw explosive, market-defying rallies throughout the fourth quarter. The parallel drop with major assets like Bitcoin reflects a signific...
Dec 1, 2025
Coins
Vitalik Buterin: 'Dark Hand' of Token Voting Could Erode Zcash Privacy
Zcash’s governance debate resurfaced over the past week after a routine election endorsement drew sharp responses from prominent industry figures. The discussion centers on whether the privacy coin should keep its committee-based system or shift to direct tokenholder voting. Zcash co-founder Zooko Wilcox opened discussions by urging support for Artkor, a long-time Zcash community member and sitting member of the Zcash Community Grants Committee (ZCG), where he seeks re-election for the next year...
Nov 28, 2025
Markets
Monero and Zcash Diverge in Double-Digit Weekly Swing as Privacy Coins Rotate
Privacy coin Monero is up over 23% in the past week amid a quiet Thanksgiving crypto market landscape, while Zcash has shed roughly 25% in the same timeframe. Both privacy coins have been volatile, with Monero currently trading at $406 while Zcash trades at around $480, according to CoinGecko data. What’s driving this dynamic? The privacy coin narrative remains a dominant factor shaping the performance of Zcash, Monero, Dash, and other related tokens. For the most part, these altcoins have rema...
Nov 27, 2025
Business
Vitalik Buterin Donates $765K in Ethereum to Privacy Messaging Apps
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has donated approximately $765,000 in ETH to two privacy messaging apps, Session and SimpleX—two apps looking to break past sector leaders Signal and Telegram. Buterin has become an increasingly vocal advocate for privacy solutions in the crypto industry, as global policies have expanded fears of global surveillance states and irked those wanting to keep their personal lives private. Encrypted messaging, like @signalapp, is critical for preserving our digital...
Nov 26, 2025
Markets
Grayscale Files to Launch Zcash ETF After Privacy Coin's 1,000% Price Surge
Crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments has jumped on the Zcash hype by filing for an exchange-traded fund that would give investors exposure to the privacy coin. A Wednesday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows that Grayscale wants to convert its Grayscale Zcash Trust into an ETF. If approved, it would be the first ETF giving investors exposure to the coin. Zcash enables users to send and receive money in private by encrypting transaction information using zero-knowledg...
Nov 24, 2025
Technology
'Privacy Is Hygiene,’ Says Ethereum Creator Vitalik Buterin After Bank Data Leak
Client data at major U.S. banks including JPMorgan, Citi, and Morgan Stanley may have been exposed in a cyberattack on mortgage technology vendor SitusAMC, prompting Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin to comment on privacy as a practice of “hygiene.” The breach stemmed from unauthorized access to systems at SitusAMC, which confirmed Saturday that a threat actor had exfiltrated data tied to several large financial institutions. Exposed data included “accounting records and legal agreements” as w...
Nov 23, 2025
Technology
More Ready Than Bitcoin? How Zcash Developers Are Preparing for the Quantum Threat
Quantum computers are still far from breaking modern cryptography, but Zcash developers are treating the possibility as an active threat. The privacy coin’s engineers have been building contingency plans for a future machine powerful enough to sift through old blockchain data and expose years of user activity. For a privacy-focused network, a “Q-Day” quantum attack would strike at the heart of its design. A successful attack could expose past activity, disrupt basic safeguards, and force develop...
Nov 19, 2025
Markets
Zcash Keeps Rising as Bitcoin Falls—And This Treasury Firm Just Bought More ZEC
Long-running privacy coin Zcash (ZEC) has continued its recent surge, rising 31% over the last week even as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other major coins are deep in the red—and now a publicly traded treasury firm said it has amassed even more of the rising cryptocurrency. Cypherpunk Technologies (Nasdaq: CYPH) announced Wednesday that it has purchased an additional 29,869.29 ZEC (Zcash) for $18 million at an average price of $602.63 per coin. Combined with the firm’s initial acquisition of 203,775.2...
Nov 12, 2025
Markets
Zcash Drops, Then Pops as Bitcoin Billionaire Arthur Hayes Warns Holders to Remove ZEC From Exchanges
Bitcoin billionaire Author Hayes warned investors on Wednesday to remove their Zcash holdings from exchanges amid increased volatility for the privacy coin. Writing on X Wednesday, the former BitMEX boss urged his nearly 766,000 followers to move their Zcash to self-custodial wallets. "If you hold $ZEC on a CEX, withdraw it to a self-custodial wallet and shield it," he wrote, referring to centralized exchanges like Coinbase and Binance. If you hold $ZEC on a CEX, withdraw it to a self-custod...
Nov 12, 2025
Coins
Zcash Treasury Company Launches With Winklevoss Backing
Nasdaq-listed Leap Therapeutics has rebranded to Cypherpunk Technologies Inc. as it pursues a digital asset strategy by accumulating ZEC, the native token of privacy coin Zcash. The Cambridge-based biotechnology firm announced Wednesday it will deploy capital to initiate a digital asset strategy after securing a $58.88 million private placement led by Winklevoss Capital, the venture capital firm founded by Gemini founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, according to a press release shared with Dec...
Nov 7, 2025
Markets
Privacy Coin Zcash Continues Historic Surge, Nearing 8-Year High Price
Privacy-focused Bitcoin alternative Zcash went on a tear Friday, surging some 33% in a matter of hours and triggering over $51 million in short position liquidations. The token surged to nearly $735 Friday afternoon, up from $536 just a day earlier. It has since settled to $666 as of this writing, still up 25% over the past day. That rapid price action made Zcash-related positions the third-most liquidated in crypto on Friday, behind only dominant mainstays Bitcoin and Ethereum. Over $59 million...
Nov 6, 2025
Markets
Myriad Moves: Traders Flip Bearish on Bitcoin, But Bullish on Zcash
Bitcoin’s recent flirtation with the $100,000 mark—falling below that level for the first time in six months—has crypto traders and prediction market users changing their convictions of late. As bearish sentiment floods social media timelines and price action continues to move lower, predictors have flipped bearish in some of Myriad’s biggest markets this week. Here’s a look at some of the most interesting moves from the past week. (Disclaimer: Myriad Markets is a product of Decrypt’s parent...
Nov 4, 2025
Coins
Zcash Surging on 'Cypherpunk Principles' as Bitcoin Alternative: Galaxy Digital
As barriers between crypto and traditional finance blend, Zcash is gaining recognition as an alternative to Bitcoin, according to Will Owens, a research analyst at Galaxy Digital. Although the privacy-focused crypto is much smaller than its $2 trillion counterpart, Zcash borrows foundational elements from Bitcoin’s codebase, and it’s serving as a spiritual successor in some ways, Owens wrote in a Tuesday report. Zcash allows users to “shield” transactions with zero-knowledge proofs, and the netw...
Nov 4, 2025
Markets
Privacy Coins Post Double-Digit Gains, Defying Market Slump
Privacy tokens are staging a dramatic rally, posting double-digit gains even as the broader digital asset market suffers a significant downturn. On Tuesday, while Bitcoin dipped below $104,000 and total crypto liquidations again exceeded $1 billion, privacy tokens saw gains. Dash surged by 47.5% over the past 24 hours, according to crypto price aggregator CoinGecko. Other tokens in the sector, including Decred, Horizen, and Secret, joined the rally with gains of 90%, 10%, and 23% respectively. Z...
Oct 24, 2025
Law and Order
83 Arrests in ‘Landmark’ Interpol Operation Hitting Crypto Terrorist Financing, Cybercrime in Africa
Interpol and Afripol have flagged $260 million in illicitly obtained crypto and fiat as part of a joint operation combating terrorist financing and cybercrime networks in Africa. Authorities arrested 83 individuals in multiple African countries as part of Operation Catalyst, which has so far seized $600,000 of the flagged $260 million in illicit assets. 🔵83 arrests in landmark African operation against terrorism financing A first-of-its-kind operation targeting terrorism financing and the ille...
Oct 20, 2025
Markets
Bittensor, Zcash Lead Altcoin Rebound as BNB Rally Cools
Bitcoin’s weekend rebound has set off a selective rally in altcoins, with Bittensor and Zcash leading gains as BNB, last week’s top performer, slipped from focus. Bitcoin’s rebound from $105,000 to an intraday high of $110,000 came as macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions showed signs of improvement. The weekend’s strength has set the stage for renewed momentum in altcoins. "Bitcoin's rally has renewed market confidence," Shawn Young, chief analyst of MEXC Research, told Decrypt. "Traders...
Oct 10, 2025
Markets
Zcash Leads Privacy Coin Surge Amid Surveillance Fears
Zcash (ZEC) has climbed 48% over the past week, leading a sector-wide privacy coin rally as investors pile into privacy-focused assets amid mounting surveillance concerns. The surge pushed Zcash to a high of over $268 Friday morning, its highest level since April 2022, though it remains 93% below its 2016 all-time high of nearly $3,200. At time of publication, Zcash is trading at around $230, up 19% in the past 24 hours, per CoinGecko data. The rally has extended across the privacy coin sector,...
Oct 9, 2025
Technology
Ethereum Foundation Launches New Cluster Focused on Privacy
The Ethereum Foundation is launching a new privacy cluster, as part of plans to expand its privacy-related projects and initiatives. The new cluster is set to include 47 researchers, engineers, coordinators, and cryptographers. It will be led by Igor Barinov, founder of open-source block explorer Blockscout and the Ethereum Layer-2 blockchain Gnosis Chain. The privacy cluster will not operate in a silo but will collaborate with other clusters across the Foundation on projects such as the Institu...

