Latest Zcash (ZEC) News Update

Deep Dive

1. Breakout from 8-Year Downtrend (29 September 2025)

Overview:
ZEC/BTC broke an 8-year logarithmic downtrend dating back to its 2017 peak, with a 130% YTD gain against USD. The move coincided with Google searches for “privacy coins” hitting all-time highs. Traders now watch whether ZEC holds above the trendline after September’s monthly close.

What this means:
This is bullish for ZEC as multi-year resistance flips to potential support, signaling a structural shift in market perception. However, historical skepticism remains—ZEC often rallied late in past cycles, prompting debates about sustainability.

(Coinspeaker)

2. Zashi CrossPay Upgrade Launches (16 September 2025)

Overview:
Electric Coin Company’s Zashi CrossPay allows shielded ZEC transfers across 20+ chains via NEAR Intents, masking metadata. Shielded transactions spiked post-launch, reflecting adoption.

What this means:
This strengthens ZEC’s utility beyond a niche privacy coin, aligning with growing demand for cross-chain confidentiality. The upgrade could attract institutional interest but faces regulatory scrutiny common to privacy tools.

(CryptoTimes)

3. Influencers Fuel Rally (25 September 2025)

Overview:
Helius CEO Mert (260K followers) and others amplified ZEC’s technical edge over Monero, citing Halo 2’s trustless setup and institutional integrations. ZEC rose 92% annually despite Monero’s security issues.

What this means:
High-profile advocacy has revitalized retail interest, but reliance on influencer narratives introduces volatility risk. ZEC’s climb from #84 to #76 by market cap shows momentum, though regulatory headwinds for privacy coins persist.

(Yahoo Finance)

Conclusion

Zcash is leveraging privacy tech upgrades and bullish sentiment to defy its historical reputation, though sustainability hinges on adoption beyond speculative trading. Will regulators tolerate its shielded transactions as cross-chain use grows?

Deep Dive

1. @TraderButWhy: ZEC/BTC breakout after 8-year slump bullish

“Zcash just invalidated its 2017–2025 downtrend vs BTC. If Sept close holds, $300+ isn’t a meme.”
– @TraderButWhy (12.3K followers · 189K impressions · 2025-09-29 17:40 UTC)
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What this means: This is bullish for ZEC because breaking multi-year resistance often attracts momentum traders. However, ZEC/BTC must hold above 0.0006072 (current: 0.0006072) to confirm the trend flip.

2. @nymproject: ZEC now buys NymVPN subs bullish

“Real anonymity stack: Pay with shielded ZEC → get private web traffic. No IP leaks, no taxman trail.”
– @nymproject (91.2K followers · 2.1M impressions · 2025-07-13 08:03 UTC)
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What this means: This is bullish for ZEC because it expands real-world utility beyond pure speculation. Shielded transaction volume (+15.5% in May) could rise as privacy seekers adopt the service.

3. @KeenanRIVALS: ZEC replenishment headaches neutral

“How is everyone buying $ZEC? I hate constantly topping up via CEXs. Needs more DEX liquidity!”
– @KeenanRIVALS (8.7K followers · 23K impressions · 2025-09-22 18:30 UTC)
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What this means: This is neutral for ZEC because while demand exists, limited off-ramps and CEX reliance could cap adoption. Zashi Wallet’s NEAR integration (live since Sept 16) aims to fix this.

4. @HeliusCEO: Mert’s ZEC advocacy bullish

“Zcash is the only privacy coin with institutional-grade cryptography. The upside here is 10x+”
– @HeliusCEO (259K followers · 3.4M impressions · 2025-09-25 18:12 UTC)
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What this means: This is bullish for ZEC because influencer endorsements are driving retail FOMO. Google searches for “privacy coins” hit ATHs this week, per Coinspeaker.

Conclusion

The consensus on ZEC is bullish, driven by technical breakouts, privacy integrations, and influencer hype. However, RSI at 74 (daily) and CEX liquidity gaps pose near-term risks. Watch the Sept 30 close against Bitcoin’s 0.0006072 level – a hold above could validate the 8-year trend reversal. Will shielded adoption outpace regulatory headwinds?

Deep Dive

1. Zcashd Deprecation Plan (August 2025)

Overview: The Electric Coin Company announced the phase-out of the legacy zcashd node software, with full migration to Zebrad (Rust-based node) and Zallet (new wallet) by 2025.

Key changes include:
- Discontinuation of 12+ RPC methods (e.g., keypoolrefill, signrawtransaction).
- Ubuntu 20.04 support dropped due to GitHub CI limitations.
- Users must explicitly confirm awareness via config file (i-am-aware...=1).

What this means: This is neutral for ZEC as it modernizes infrastructure but requires node operators to adapt. Long-term, it aims to improve scalability and developer experience. (Source)

2. Zashi CrossPay Upgrade (16 September 2025)

Overview: The Zashi wallet integrated Near Protocol’s “Intents” system, enabling shielded ZEC to perform cross-chain swaps across 20+ blockchains without exposing metadata.

Technical highlights:
- Uses zero-knowledge proofs to validate transactions off-chain.
- Supports encrypted memos and privacy-first architecture.

What this means: This is bullish for ZEC because it expands real-world utility for private payments in DeFi and bridges Zcash’s privacy with broader ecosystems. Shielded transaction volume spiked 18% post-launch. (Source)

3. NU6.1 Testnet Activation (April 2025)

Overview: Network Upgrade 6.1 deployed on testnet, introducing:
- Enhanced Orchard pool logic for shielded transactions.
- Fixed transparent balance calculation bugs affecting RPC methods like getbalance.

What this means: This is neutral-to-bullish, as it strengthens ZEC’s privacy guarantees but requires mainnet validation. Developers can test NU6.1 via -nuparams=4dec4df0:HEIGHT. (Source)

Conclusion

Zcash’s 2025 updates prioritize privacy interoperability (CrossPay) and infrastructure modernization (Zebrad migration). With shielded transactions now usable cross-chain and node software evolving, will ZEC’s developer activity sustain its 90-day 89% price rally?

Deep Dive

1. Development Funding Vote (November 2025)

Overview:
The current Zcash development fund expires in November 2025, and the community is voting on six proposals to replace it (Kanalcoin). This vote will determine how 20% of mining rewards are allocated for ecosystem grants, protocol upgrades, and marketing.

What this means:
This is bullish if a proposal passes, ensuring continued development and regulatory advocacy. A failure to agree could stall innovation and weaken ZEC’s position against rivals like Monero.

2. Proof-of-Stake Transition (2026)

Overview:
A 2021 community poll showed 85% support for moving away from energy-intensive PoW (Zcash Forum). While no hard timeline exists, ECC engineers are exploring PoS designs to improve scalability and decentralization.

What this means:
A successful shift to PoS could reduce regulatory scrutiny and attract ESG-focused investors. However, delays or technical hurdles might alienate miners and slow adoption.

3. Scalability Upgrades (2026+)

Overview:
Zcash’s long-term roadmap emphasizes scaling solutions like zk-SNARKs optimizations and Layer 2 integrations. The recent Zashi CrossPay upgrade (Sept 2025) enabled shielded cross-chain swaps via NEAR Protocol, hinting at broader interoperability goals.

What this means:
Enhanced scalability could make shielded transactions faster and cheaper, boosting adoption in payments and DeFi. However, competition from privacy-focused L2s (e.g., Aztec) may dilute ZEC’s uniqueness.

Conclusion

Zcash’s immediate priority is securing sustainable funding, while its long-term viability hinges on transitioning to PoS and solving scalability. Success in these areas could solidify its role as a privacy-first payment layer, but execution risks remain. Will regulatory pressures accelerate or hinder ZEC’s roadmap delivery?