Zcash (ZEC) reached an intraday high of $979 per coin on Thursday afternoon, driven by significant price gains that have attracted mining activity to the network. The price movement represents an 88.1% increase over the past 30 days and a 64.7% rise over the previous two weeks.
The surge in ZEC's dollar value has corresponded with a sharp increase in mining activity. The Zcash network's hashrate is currently operating at 91% of its all-time high, reaching 27.9 GSol/s (gigasolutions per second) on August 28 at block height 3,463,689. The network uses the Equihash proof-of-work algorithm, where miners solve computational puzzles to validate transactions.
Mining Profitability Peaks
ZEC mining has become the most profitable proof-of-work mining algorithm by current metrics. Bitmain's Antminer Z15 Pro, a ZEC-specific ASIC miner that produces 840 KSol/s, is estimated to generate approximately $59.09 per day at current prices. The earlier Z15 model, producing 420 KSol/s, generates around $29.25 daily.
Both the Z15 Pro and Z15 are currently sold out on Bitmain's official shop, though third-party resellers are offering Z15 Pro units at premiums above the original $4,999 list price. Bitmain's mid-range Z15K miner, producing 525 KSol/s, is estimated to earn $35.14 per day and is also unavailable for purchase directly from the manufacturer.
Profitability Dependent on Price Stability
Mining profitability estimates change minute-to-minute with ZEC price fluctuations and are not guaranteed. Industry observers note that if ZEC's price declines significantly, mining hashpower could shift away from the network as quickly as it arrived, following profit incentives rather than technological considerations.
