Zcash and privacy coins have become crypto’s strongest-performing segment, according to Glassnode data from Sept. 7. Privacy coins have gained 213% in 2026 while Bitcoin remains down 36%, and the market capitalization of the top 200 privacy coins has increased from $7.1 billion a year ago to $33.6 billion today. Nearly half of that increase occurred during the past month. Zcash has led the advance, rising 2,496% and entering the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. The token now represents roughly 62% of the privacy sector’s value. All eight privacy coins with at least one year of trading history are higher over the past year, compared with one in eight assets across the top 200. Glassnode also recorded its broadest positive 30-day period, with 91.5% of the top 200 cryptocurrencies gaining. Santiment said Zcash social volume peaked at 391 mentions alongside its price, about four times its late-August baseline. Crypto trader Altcoin Sherpa said recent Zcash pullbacks have been relatively shallow, at about 5% to 15%, and expects further upside if Bitcoin remains strong. The trader said Zcash could reach $5,000 to $10,000 this cycle under that condition.