Zcash Price Could Hit $8,100 on Bitcoin Market Share Gains: Grayscale

Grayscale Research believes Zcash remains significantly undervalued despite its recent surge, arguing that growing demand for financial privacy could allow the cryptocurrency to capture a larger share of Bitcoin’s market. ZEC has gained nearly 70% recently and about 350% year-to-date, yet its market capitalization remains below 1% of Bitcoin’s.

Grayscale Head of Research Zach Pandl said Zcash could compete with Bitcoin’s powerful network effects because of its privacy-focused technology. He pointed to rising concerns over AI-driven surveillance, continued work to address threats such as quantum computing, and stronger cross-chain connectivity as potential catalysts for ZEC adoption.

Pandl also highlighted Zcash’s use of “intents” technology, which could allow users and AI agents to treat ZEC as a private asset hub connected to other blockchain ecosystems. This means widespread merchant adoption may not be necessary for Zcash to gain broader utility.

Grayscale outlined several scenarios for the Zcash price if the cryptocurrency captures a larger portion of Bitcoin’s market capitalization. According to the research, reaching a 2% share could lift ZEC above $1,622. If Zcash eventually reaches 10% of Bitcoin’s market cap within five years, its price could climb to approximately $8,100.

However, Grayscale acknowledged that Zcash carries greater investment risks despite its potential upside.

ZEC was trading near $790 after falling about 7%, with an intraday range of $754.93 to $847.10. The pullback followed a strong weekly rally as traders awaited U.S. PCE inflation data and upcoming crypto options expirations.

The decline also came after the Grayscale Zcash ETF began trading on NYSE Arca under the ticker ZCSH. The fund, created through the conversion of the Grayscale Zcash Trust, is the first U.S. ETF offering spot exposure to ZEC.

Meanwhile, ZEC futures open interest dropped 12% over 24 hours to $1.65 billion. Open interest declined across Binance, OKX and Hyperliquid, although renewed futures buying later suggested traders were beginning to rebuild positions.