Arthur Hayes has a new favorite coin — and it is not Bitcoin. The veteran crypto investor recently revealed that Zcash has become one of his largest crypto holdings outside of Bitcoin, a disclosure that has drawn fresh attention to a cryptocurrency that many had written off.
His view is not an isolated one. Barry Silbert, a known personality in the crypto investment circles, described Zcash as resembling Bitcoin during its infancy — specifically around 2013, when BTC was still a fringe asset before its first major wave of mainstream adoption.
Arthur on why the Zcash and NEAR integration is the quietly building mechanism that flips NEAR from inflationary to deflationary
What Is Driving The Renewed Interest?Government agencies, exchange-traded fund issuers, and blockchain surveillance firms can now monitor on-chain transactions with increasing precision. For some investors, that level of transparency is a problem.
Unlike Bitcoin, where all transaction data is public by default, Zcash gives users the option to transact privately while still allowing for transparency when needed.
Strengthening DemandThe renewed interest has shown up in the market. Since the start of May 2026, ZEC climbed from around $380 to a high near $615 before pulling back.
The coin has gained more than 30% this month alone and is up nearly 50% over the past 30 days, significantly outpacing Bitcoin during the same stretch. At the time of writing, ZEC is trading below $520 after a 5.50% drop in the last 24 hours.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
