CMC News

$ZEC Surges 63% to Three-Year High on Privacy Demand

$ZEC has emerged as the best-performing digital asset over the past 24 hours after soaring to a three-year high on Wednesday. The price of the #privacy coin recently stood at over $121, jumping by 63% from the previous day.

Over a seven-day period, $ZEC has soared by more than 107%. The last time its price was this high was back in April 2022, though the coin remains 96% below its 2016 all-time high of nearly $3,193.

The surge comes as crypto market observers emphasized the coin's role as insurance against surveillance concerns related to $BTC. Some observers have raised concerns about bad actors or governments surveilling BTC users due to the coin's transparent nature, positioning ZEC as a safer alternative.

Entrepreneur and AngelList founder Naval Ravikant wrote that while BTC is insurance against fiat, $ZEC is insurance against $BTC. Ex-Coinbase engineer and Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz added that the coin was gaining popularity as CBDCs and centralized coins accelerate.

ZEC is the 82nd-biggest digital coin, with a market cap of over $1.8 billion. As a privacy coin, Zcash enables users to send and receive money in private by encrypting transaction information using zero-knowledge proofs, a cryptographic method that proves something is known without revealing the known information directly.

#CBDC's, or central bank digital #currencies, are digital coins managed by a central bank. Unlike cryptocurrencies like $BTC, $ETH, or $ZEC, a government entity issues them.

A large segment of the crypto community has vehemently opposed CBDCs. President Donald #Trump said during his campaign that he would never allow one in the U.S.

In January, the president signed an executive order prohibiting the establishment, issuance, circulation, and use of a CBDC within the jurisdiction of the United States.