Key takeaways:
-
Zcash and Dash are leading a post-crash “Privacy Revival,” breaking multi-year downtrends.
-
Monero did not join the rally due to major exchange delistings.
Privacy-focused cryptocurrencies, Zcash (Zec) and dash (Dash), was among the strongest gainers following the crypto market rout on Friday and Saturday Liquidated a record $ 20 billion or more positions.
As of Thursday, ZEC has bounced more than 66% from its October 9 low to $246. It is also up nearly 350% year-to-date (YTD), including 230% gains in October alone.
Dash has rebounded more than 65% since the crash, trading around $50 through Thursday. Its returns over the past month, meanwhile, were close to 150%.
Even litecoin (LTC), which has undergone a privacy upgrade, dubbed “Mimblewimble“In 2021, it jumped more than 80% from its local lows. However, it lagged behind most privacy coins during the year, reaching 7.50% in 2025.
Recent price surges have prompted some traders to announce a so-called “Dinosaur Coin Season“Where older coins (pre-2017) that have a history of underperforming the crypto market for years are seeing a bullish revival.
But what is driving this rally?
Zcash Endorsement by Naval Ravikant
The total market capitalization of privacy coins has increased by 36.70% since October 1, reaching more than $7 billion as of Thursday, according to Messari’s list of 151 such tokens.
Privacy coins started to rally after prominent investor Naval Ravikant called Zcash an “insurance against bitcoin” in an October 1 post, with ZEC jumping more than 60% on the day.
After wiping out the crash of billions in leveraged positions, the Altcoin market hit its most oversold levels since April, creating an attractive setup for buyers.
So when Zcash rebounded, fueled by oversold conditions and the nod from Ravikant, it signaled to traders that the privacy coin market was ready for a rebound.
The result was a classic stock rally, where privacy tokens bounced wildly.
Related: Shapeshift shifts the focus on privacy with Zcash Shielded support
Monero (XMR), the top privacy coin by market cap, missed out on sharp rebounds. It remains removed or restricted on most major exchanges, including Binance and OKX, as well as some European trading platforms, due to the undesirable design.
These delistings drastically reduced liquidity and visibility, limiting its upside in broad market rebounds.
Technical Reversals after multi-year downturns
The “dino” coins that have advanced recently are breaking out of multi-year downtrends, marking a long-awaited shift in momentum. It’s the same way XRP broke its seven-year consolidation in November 2024rallying over 630% afterwards.
Both Zcash and Dash have broken out of multi-year falling wedge patterns, a bullish reversal setup that often precedes a strong continuation.
ZEC confirmed its breakout this month after passing the $200-$220 zone resistance, which it has now flipped to new short-term support. The move marked the end of a seven-year downtrend and opened the door to a potential rally toward $490 in the coming months.
Dash has entered its own breakout phase, retaking the $50 mark for the first time since early 2024.
A sustained close above this zone, further gauged by the 50-month EMA (the red wave), could prove a wedge breakout, setting sights on $760 or higher in the coming months or years.
Dash’s pullback from the 50-month EMA resistance could invalidate or delay the multimonth breakout setup.
LTC remains within an ascending triangle pattern, defined by a series of higher lows since 2022.
It repeatedly failed to break above the $100-$150 range. But a decisive breakout above this ceiling could trigger a measured move towards the 1.0 Fibonacci retracement level near $375, marking a full recovery of previous losses in the cycle.
Together, these structures reinforce the “privacy revival” narrative, with ZEC and Dash currently leading the way.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should do their own research when making decisions.
