Zcash, better known by its ticker symbol ZEC, has recently surpassed meme coin Shiba Inu (SHIB) and privacy project Monero (XMR) in market capitalization. Its total market cap has surged to $6.22 billion, with a price of approximately $382 per coin, following a remarkable 14.8% increase in just 24 hours.
This shake-up in crypto rankings places ZEC in 21st place globally, just behind Litecoin, which holds a market cap of $7.29 billion and trades at around $95 per LTC. With another strong day, Zcash could potentially break into the top 20 for the first time ever, further reshaping the cryptocurrency landscape.
The recent rally did not occur in isolation. Much of this impressive 800% growth within a month can be attributed to renewed interest from notable figures such as Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz and entrepreneur Naval Ravikant. Both have helped reignite enthusiasm for Zcash, a privacy coin that many had previously dismissed as outdated or a “dino” coin.
Adding to the excitement, Mumtaz confirmed that ZEC light-client integration will follow the rollout of the upcoming SIMD-0388 system upgrade. This significant update will enable BLS12-381 elliptic-curve syscalls, paving the way for enhanced interoperability.
So, what does this mean for the relationship between Solana and Zcash? In simple terms, once the update is live, developers will be able to build a “light client”—a lightweight connector that allows Solana to read and verify Zcash data without requiring a full Zcash node. This capability could lead to Solana applications checking Zcash transactions directly, opening new doors for cross-chain privacy tools and swaps between the two networks.
The milestone has even caught the attention of Solana Labs cofounder Anatoly Yakovenko, who publicly congratulated Zcash on its market cap achievement.
Within the Zcash community, surpassing SHIB and XMR is viewed as a long-awaited victory. Sean Bowe, one of the project’s early engineers, described the accomplishment as “years in the making.” Traders have noted that ZEC’s exchange float has significantly thinned since mid-year, making its price more sensitive to new demand—an effect that has further fueled the rally.
Whether this momentum represents a short-term surge or the beginning of a lasting change for Zcash remains to be seen. Monero now trails by less than $200 million, while Litecoin sits just under a billion ahead. If this positive trend continues into the next trading cycle, we may soon witness a reshuffle in the crypto top 20 led by a privacy coin.
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