The Zcash (ZEC) token has experienced a massive rally. Its price surpassed $500 for the first time since 2018. This boom is due to a renewed interest in Zcash and its privacy capabilities. Alex Bornstein, the new executive director of the Zcash Foundation, called the movement an organic trend and not a marketing campaign.
The privacy-focused cryptocurrency has been in the spotlight in 2025. Its narrative has been driven by vocal support from prominent industry figures. Commentators like Arthur Hayes, Naval Ravikant, and Ansem have publicly advocated for its benefits. These price predictions and praise for privacy have played a key role in ZEC’s outperformance against other altcoins in the general landscape.
The sudden rise has generated skepticism in the market. Many question whether this is a coordinated marketing campaign. However, Alex Bornstein dismissed these theories. In recent statements, Bornstein affirmed the foundation had “absolutely nothing to do” with the promotion. He emphasized that the Zcash Foundation is a U.S.-registered 501(c)(3) public charity and, therefore, does not pay people to promote the token.
Is the Zcash Boom a Coordinated Campaign or an Organic Privacy Awakening?
Bornstein attributes the rally to growing public concern about government overreach. He stated that “people are just waking up to what Zcash can really accomplish.” This sentiment is shared by other experts. Ran Neuner, host of Crypto Banter, described the movement as “the most exciting thing happening in crypto rightT.” Neuner compared the current fervor for Zcash to the early days of Bitcoin between 2009 and 2017.
Neuner argues that the momentum comes from the same “cypherpunk” ideology. This time, the community is uniting around privacy, which he considers the “missing piece for Bitcoin.” Although Zcash was inspired by Bitcoin, Bornstein notes that the Zcash ecosystem is more agile. This allows it to “move faster” in implementing governance and utility improvements. The renewed interest in Zcash redefines the economy of privacy coins.
