BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has revealed that Zcash (ZEC) is now the second-largest holding in his family office Maelstrom, trailing only Bitcoin (BTC).
“Due to the rapid ascent in price, ZEC is now the 2nd largest *LIQUID* holding in MaelstromFund portfolio behind BTC,” he wrote in a Friday post on X.
The disclosure comes amid a sharp rally in Zcash, which has climbed from a low of $137 to over $730 in the past month, representing an increase of more than 400%.
Other privacy coins have also posted strong weekly gains, with Dash (DASH), Decred (DCR) and ZKsync (ZK) all gaining more than 100%. However, major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) have remained range-bound amid broader market uncertainty.
Related: Zcash knocking at door of top 10 cryptos as market cap smashes $10.6B
Zcash drops 12% after massive rally
At the time of writing, ZEC trades at $548, down about 11.8% in the past 24 hours, with a market capitalization of $8.9 billion, according to CoinMarketCap. Trading activity remains elevated, with 24-hour volume up 139% to $4.63 billion.
Zcash’s circulating supply stands at 16.28 million ZEC, with a maximum supply cap of 21 million. The token’s fully diluted valuation (FDV) is around $11.5 billion.
Zcash’s hybrid model, which supports both transparent and shielded transactions, has made it a more palatable option. Like Bitcoin, it has a fixed supply of 21 million coins and is secured by a proof-of-work (PoW) mechanism.
Related: Truth behind comeback of privacy-focused protocol Zcash in 2025
Zcash’s comeback driven by grassroots privacy movement
Zcash Foundation executive director Alex Bornstein said the recent resurgence of Zcash has been entirely organic, fueled by rising public concern over government surveillance and data control. Speaking on Cointelegraph’s Chain Reaction show, Bornstein noted that the renewed interest reflects a “powerful narrative” around digital privacy and financial autonomy.
Bornstein clarified that the Zcash Foundation, a US-registered nonprofit, had “absolutely nothing to do” with the wave of renewed attention surrounding ZEC. “We were surprised to see when these mentions started popping up. Then to see that kind of wave just start to spread and then crest was extraordinary,” he said.
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