Sui outpaces Bitcoin and Ether following Mysten Labs’ push for privacy-focused solutions.

Sui Rockets 14% as Privacy Research Sparks Market Speculation

Layer 1 blockchain Sui (SUI) surged over 14% in the past 24 hours, outpacing Bitcoin (BTC $91,661) and Ether (ETH $3,200), which rose only about 1% each. The move makes SUI the top-performing large-cap token of the day, highlighting a token-specific catalyst rather than broad market momentum.

The rally follows a research paper co-authored by Mysten Labs, Sui’s core developer, exploring how modern blockchains could incorporate privacy features without fully adopting legacy privacy coin designs.

The paper, structured as a systematization of knowledge, categorizes privacy levels from basic confidentiality — hiding transaction amounts — to k-anonymity and full anonymity, which obscure sender and receiver identities. It positions Sui within the account-based model, alongside Ethereum and Solana, and discusses implementing confidential balances, limited anonymity sets, and sender-receiver unlinkability using cryptographic primitives like homomorphic encryption and zero-knowledge proofs. It also highlights trade-offs: stronger privacy increases computational demands, complicates client support in resource-limited environments, and raises regulatory considerations.

A Renewed Focus on Digital Cash

Privacy-focused assets have gained attention in recent months. During late 2025, coins like Zcash and Monero outperformed broader markets amid macro pressures and a strong dollar. Analysts interpret this trend as a rotation toward digital cash — assets designed for spending rather than yield — where zero-knowledge proofs enable confidential transactions without slowing settlement or compromising compliance.

While the paper does not outline a timeline for a Sui privacy token or introduce new protocols, investors see it as a signal of potential future developments, fueling renewed interest in financial privacy.