Bitcoin News Today: Zcash's Privacy Premium Under Siege: Regulatory Clampdowns Threaten Bullish Outlook

Zcash (ZEC) has surged past $180 in October 2025, driven by renewed investor interest in privacy-focused cryptocurrencies and Grayscale's strategic accumulation of its Zcash Trust (ZCSH). Analysts project a wide range of price targets, from $1,000 to $62,893, citing factors such as zk-SNARKs technology, halving cycles, and speculative capital inflows. Thor Torrens, a Zcash project advisor, highlighted a theoretical scenario where 10% of offshore wealth allocated to Zcash could push its price to $62,893 per coin. Additionally, parallels to Bitcoin's halving-driven price patterns have fueled optimism, with some predicting ZEC could mirror Bitcoin's $20,000 surge post-halving.

However, Zcash's rally has coincided with historical market tops, raising caution. Market analyst Maartunn noted that ZEC pumps often precede Bitcoin's bearish phases. Regulatory risks loom large, particularly as the European Union plans to ban privacy tokens by 2027 under new anti-money laundering (AML) rules. Similar restrictions in Dubai, Japan, and South Korea have already impacted Monero (XMR), which faces delistings and intense selling pressure. Zcash's anonymity features, while attractive to privacy advocates, remain a double-edged sword, balancing institutional adoption with compliance challenges.

Monero, often regarded as the gold standard for privacy, employs mandatory obfuscation via ring signatures, stealth addresses, and RingCT. Its default anonymity ensures perfect fungibility, making it a preferred choice for users in authoritarian regimes and darknet markets. Conversely, Zcash's optional privacy model, which allows users to choose between transparent and shielded transactions, appeals to businesses requiring auditability. Despite Zcash's advanced zk-SNARKs technology, its adoption lags due to the default transparency setting, which dilutes network-wide privacy.

Technical analyses highlight Zcash's bullish momentum, with moving averages indicating strong short- and long-term trends. The 50-day and 200-day moving averages on four-hour and daily charts show upward trajectories, while the Fear & Greed Index remains at 37 (Fear), suggesting undervaluation. Zcash's price prediction tables project a 33.5% increase in October 2025, with potential peaks reaching $77.51. By 2030, estimates suggest an average price of $388.32, though these forecasts depend on sustained adoption and regulatory clarity.

The privacy coin landscape remains fragmented. Monero's untraceable transactions and fungibility position it as a long-term store of value for privacy-first users, but its niche status and regulatory resistance hinder mass adoption. Zcash's hybrid model attempts to bridge privacy and compliance, yet its optional transparency undermines its anonymity set. As global regulators tighten controls on privacy tokens, the market will likely see a shift toward solutions that balance user privacy with institutional requirements.

Source: [1] From $180 to $60,000? The Wild Predictions for Zcash's Future (https://beincrypto.com/zcash-analyst-price-predictions/) [2] Zcash (ZEC) Price Prediction 2025 2026 2027 - 2030 (https://changelly.com/blog/zcash-zec-price-prediction/) [3] Zcash vs. Monero: Privacy Coin Standoff (https://changehero.io/blog/zcash-vs-monero-privacy-coin-standoff/) [4] Monero vs. Zcash: Which Crypto is Better for Your Privacy? (https://yellow.com/learn/monero-vs-zcash-which-crypto-is-better-for-your-privacy-in-2025)