- Bitcoin has broken back above US$80K, pushing the total crypto market cap to its highest level since early 2026.
- Zcash is the standout performer, gaining over 15% as a Grayscale report reinforces its privacy narrative.
- Fed Governor Waller’s comments on a possible rate hold, alongside mass short liquidations across BTC, ETH and ZEC, added further fuel to the rally.
The crypto market cap has gained 4.35% over the past 24 hours and currently sits at US$2.72 trillion (AU$3.77 trillion), the highest level since early 2026. This comes as Bitcoin has moved back over the US$80K (AU$110.98K) mark, trading at US$80,821 (AU$112,120) at the time of writing – a 4% increase over the past day.
Other altcoins like Ethereum (+4%), XRP (+5.8%) and Solana (+3.18%) are also up, but Zcash (ZEC) has made the most impressive gains among the top alts.
ZEC Leads the Pack
ZEC gained 15.49% over the past day and is currently trading at US$947.07 (AU$1,313). The rally doesn’t trace back to one specific news trigger, instead, it looks like a mix of factors reinforcing each other.
A Grayscale Research report flagging AI-era surveillance risks and positioning ZEC as a privacy solution has reinvigorated the bullish narrative around the token. At the same time, ZEC is already in an extended uptrend with heavy derivatives trading and nearby liquidation clusters, which makes it prone to outsized swings from relatively small order-flow shifts.
Read more: Bitcoin ETFs Stage Comeback While XRP Funds Rack Up 11-Day Inflow Streak
On top of that, social media hype and trading setups circulating online are amplifying short-term volatility and likely fed into the latest spike. In short, this looks like leveraged follow-through on an existing bullish story combined with a stretched technical setup, rather than a reaction to fresh breaking news.
What moved markets further was commentary from Fed Governor Christopher Waller, who said he would be “inclined to support” a rate hold if inflation stabilises.
Meanwhile, data from Coinglass shows that over 96,000 traders were liquidated, with total liquidations amounting to US$544.68 million (AU$754.49 million). Of that, US$251.03 million (AU$348.13 million) came from Bitcoin short liquidations and US$82.04 million (AU$113.77 million) from ETH short liquidations.
Interestingly, ZEC traders saw US$22.47 million (AU$31.16 million) in liquidations – US$1.41 million (AU$1.95 million) in long liquidations and US$21.06 million (AU$29.2 million) in short liquidations.
Read also: SEC Chair Atkins Backs CLARITY Act as Senate Vote Looms
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