Asia Morning Briefing: ZEC Jumps Ahead, Outstripping What Transparent Blockchain Data Suggests

Zcash’s explosive rally continues to defy what can be verified on-chain, suggesting the token’s surge is being driven more by speculative flows than broad user adoption. While Monero’s network activity still mirrors steady, organic demand for privacy assets, Zcash’s move looks increasingly like a high-beta outlier untethered from measurable fundamentals.

Good Morning, Asia. Here’s what you need to know:

Zcash (ZEC$492.54) remains one of the year’s standout performers, dramatically outperforming major assets including bitcoin and ether during the recent market drawdown. Yet the network’s visible data shows little evidence of a corresponding spike in real usage.

Because Zcash supports both transparent and shielded transactions, only part of the network can be analyzed directly. A growing share of activity has migrated into shielded pools, where addresses, amounts, and flows are intentionally concealed—meaning transparent metrics largely reflect exchange-facing activity rather than the full user base.

The only noticeable jump in publicly visible throughput came during the brief Zerdinals inscription wave, which drove daily transactions above 70,000. Despite that surge, transparent senders stayed within a narrow 8,000–14,000 band, implying the activity was dominated by a handful of repeat participants rather than a broad influx of new users. After the inscription spike faded, volumes returned to previous levels.

Behind the scenes, however, Zcash’s migration to the Orchard shielded pool continues to accelerate. Shielded supply has expanded from roughly 1.2 million to more than 4 million ZEC over recent years, and fully private transactions are at their highest levels ever. Features like Unified Addresses, auto-shielding and Zashi’s default-private interface have deepened usage within the invisible side of the network—while leaving almost no trace on transparent metrics.

If there were a broad marketwide shift into privacy coins, Monero would likely reflect it. Instead, Monero’s throughput remains stable in its usual 20,000–30,000 daily transaction range, showing no signs of increased demand. That contrast reinforces the notion that Zcash’s rally is unique to ZEC rather than part of a sector-wide privacy narrative.

Neither network shows clear evidence of a surge in new users. Transparent Zcash data points to steady participation, while shielded flows remain opaque by design. With an estimated 30% of the ZEC supply locked in shielded addresses—and therefore off exchanges—the resulting reduction in circulating supply is likely amplifying price moves far beyond what visible activity can justify.

Until private-side usage can be validated through clearer proxies or wallet behavior, traders may be assigning a premium to ZEC that exceeds what its measurable fundamentals support.

Market Snapshot

• BTC: Around $86,800 after sliding from its Nvidia-driven rally above $93,000
• ETH: Near $2,850 after dipping below $2,900 amid renewed FG Nexus selling
• Gold: Trading near $4,077, roughly 7% off its October high, yet still up more than 50% year-to-date
• Nikkei 225: Down 1.58% as hotter October inflation boosts expectations for BOJ tightening and heightens yen concerns

Other Headlines

• Crypto lobbyists push for Trump engagement amid ongoing congressional uncertainty (CoinDesk)
• Ray Dalio says he still owns bitcoin but remains wary of quantum and traceability risks (Decrypt)
• MegaETH to open pre-deposit access for the USDm stablecoin next week (The Block)

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