Arthur Hayes forecasts Zcash could reach $1,000 next, citing privacy narrative demand, institutional interest, supply dynamics, and market risks ahead.
Zcash has returned to headlines after Arthur Hayes outlined a bold near-term price outlook. The former BitMEX chief called $1000 Zcash’s first big stop. Meanwhile, he associated the move to increasing liquidity flows. As a result, privacy-minded assets once again received speculative and institutional attention.
Arthur Hayes Flags $1,000 as Zcash’s First Major Price Stop
Arthur Hayes recently said that Zcash’s current cycle could reach $1,000. He expressed this view in a public post from December. Since this liquidity call, ZEC has appreciated by almost 40 percent. Consequently, privacy narratives got a new impetus across crypto markets.
The tears of the bears shall be my sustenance. $ZEC first stop $1k pic.twitter.com/FPCZbNxMTj
— Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) December 29, 2025
Currently, Zcash is trading around $524.31 with small daily gains. However, the general trend is also strong. During the past month, ZEC made nearly 14 percent progress. Moreover, annual gains are over 748 percent, which is better than most large-cap cryptocurrencies.
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Hayes set forth $1,000 as a first stop instead of a final target. He even encouraged bearish traders to continue to short. According to him, persistent volatility could feed more upside. Nevertheless, he recognized that pullbacks towards $400 are still possible.
Privacy Demand and Supply Dynamics Shape the Bullish Case
There are also a number of structural factors that support Hayes’ bullish outlook for Zcash. First, on-chain adoption of privacy is continuing to rise. Around 30 percent of the supply of Zcash now circulating in the open lies in shielded addresses. This change is a reflection of increasing demand for totally private transactions.
Institutional activity also boosted confidence in late 2025. Grayscale introduced a new exclusive Zcash investment fund. As a result, there was more speculation about a future Zcash exchange-traded fund. In addition, Cypherpunk Technologies revealed an $18 million purchase of ZEC.
That firm, associated with the Winklevoss twins, aims to hold five percent of the supply. Therefore, long-term accumulation tales became credible. Furthermore, Hayes noted Zcash’s late 2025 halving as a supply inflection point. Reduced issuance might contract the availability of liquidity.
Technically, analysts continue to watch for key resistance around $600. A breakout above that level could be confirmed, which could open up paths to $750. Subsequently, $1,000 seems plausible by mid-2026. Still, the structure of the market is sensitive to leverage and liquidation events.
Despite the hopes, there are clearly visible risks. Regulatory pressure on privacy coins is the most significant issue. Any coordinated crackdown could get ZEC headed back down to $200 or $300. Liquidity access is also restricted on regulatory venues.
Hayes believes decentralized exchanges may deal with future demand. However, thinner order books could compound the volatility. Therefore, traders are still cautious in spite of good momentum. Overall, what rallied around Zcash is a combination of narrative power, supply dynamics and liquidation-driven price discovery ahead.