Zcash Crashes 15% as Historical Correlation With Bitcoin Emerges

Privacy token Zcash (ZEC) retraced after rising to $176 on Monday, its highest level since April 2022. At press time, Zcash was down 15% to $144, extending its drop into the second day.

Zcash suffers one of the biggest losses among the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap but remains up 120% weekly. According to CoinGecko data, ZEC is up 196% in the last 14 days, contributing to a 203% gain in the last 30 days.

Zcash’s recent rally follows an announcement at the start of October from asset manager Grayscale on Zcash trust, allowing eligible investors to gain exposure to the token.

Last week, crypto data provider Messari reported that Zcash was leading "weekly mindshare with a 1,000% increase" on X, suggesting rising social media interest in the cryptocurrency.

Despite the recent surge, Zcash remains about 95% away from its all-time high. Zcash launched in 2016, setting a record high of $3,191 in October of that year.

Zcash historical correlation with Bitcoin emerges

The Zcash price increases has historically shown implications for Bitcoin price, analysts find. According to Maartunn, ZCash (ZEC) pumps are usually a red flag for Bitcoin, adding that historically, its surges tend to happen near local and cycle tops.

Bitcoin reached a new all-time high on Monday, surpassing $126,000 for the first time in its history.

BTC reached a new high of $126,296 on Coinbase, boosted by significant spot ETF inflows and dropping exchange balances.

At press time, Bitcoin was down 1.7% in the last 24 hours to $123,180. The recent shutdown has caused an economic data blackout, delaying key reports. Investors are looking at comments from several Federal Reserve officials this week, including Governor Stephen Miran on Wednesday and Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, for insights.