For years, the privacy aspect of cryptocurrencies has been on the back burner. Why this sudden pump? The most important question is: Will this pump continue? The cryptocurrency sector has dismissed it as outdated, over-regulated, or simply “too controversial.” These factors also limit mainstream adoption. The traders moved on. Investors stopped watching. It felt like the privacy altcoin story was over.
However, the market has just revised its assumptions significantly. Privacy coins are quietly making the most powerful momentum shift in the space right now. And it’s not just one token. It’s about the whole vertical moving together. So the real question is, why now? Why are privacy altcoins now waking up? Let’s dig into what triggered this change.
Why are privacy altcoins rapidly increasing?
I have noticed that privacy is making a comeback in cryptocurrencies. The main reason is that the surrounding environment has changed. Over the past year, governments have increased their oversight and regulatory pressures. This includes new KYC and AML proposals in both the US and EU. Centralized exchanges are tightening identity verification. For example, Binance introduced mandatory KYC from 2021 to 2023. On the other hand, 2022 also saw sanctions against mixers like Tornado Cash by the US Treasury.
2/ Over the past few months, we have seen a full-fledged privacy resurgence across cryptocurrencies.
Everyone from Snowden to Vitalik is repeating the same thing.
“Privacy is no longer an option, it’s a matter of survival.”
And looking at the charts…privacy coins are waking up. pic.twitter.com/syPjbnb0yh
— Crypto Nova (@CryptoGirlNova) November 6, 2025
On the other hand, almost all on-chain transactions can be tracked. Chaineries, a blockchain analytics company, demonstrated this in its 2023 Transparency Report. In other words, decentralization does not equal privacy.
Therefore, this realization is driving new demands for privacy technologies. This coincides with an increase in digital surveillance. A good example is the discussion of state-issued CBDCs with full transaction traceability. In short, the resurgence of privacy isn’t just hype, it’s a response to the state of the world.
System and privacy
If we look at the organization, we can see this as well. What they want is privacy in the infrastructure, not the privacy coin itself. Banks, fintechs and businesses want:
- Confidential transactions with clients.
- Selective disclosure (disclose data only when necessary).
- Regulatory auditability.
“When these things become common tools…
Blockchain for payments…
Blockchain for personal finance…
People will then demand privacy.
And institutions will demand privacy. ”
– @eddylazzarinCTO @a16zcrypto pic.twitter.com/KE5vplFMQD
— a16z crypto (@a16zcrypto) October 31, 2025
They view fully anonymous coins as a regulatory liability. Therefore, institutions avoid directly holding privacy altcoins. On the other hand, educational institutions believe that privacy is essential to mainstream adoption. Privacy is not optional, but it must be compliant privacy. That’s where changes are happening. Surveillance risk is changing minds. As CBDC development expands, institutions are realizing that:
- Complete transparency of transactions is not acceptable to users.
- We need standardized privacy. Must not be optional.
But efficiency is not the only requirement.
Institutions cannot always operate in public. Trading desks require a certain level of confidentiality. Treasury officials need discretion. Competitive advantage requires privacy by design. pic.twitter.com/xhla8soOwH
— Austin King (@AustinKing) May 29, 2025
So can privacy altcoins and their institutions find common ground? As you can see, solving the problem at hand is not easy. Privacy Altcoins are still considered debt. But the demand for them exists.
You can check out my video on privacy altcoins from 3 weeks ago here. So let’s take a look at which privacy altcoins are popular right now.
Zcash ($ZEC)
Zcash ($ZEC) is today’s first privacy coin. It is a fork of Bitcoin that was launched in 2016. It provides additional options besides transparent trading like $BTC. An additional option is to use shielded or private transactions. It uses a dual address system. So, this allows you to choose whether you want your transactions to be transparent or shielded. This is one of the few privacy-focused coins that offers this option.
Privacy regarding money is normal. Cash and gold have already proven that.
Zcash brings the same privacy to a portable digital format without sacrificing its role as a store of value.
with shield $ZEC You can transact publicly without revealing anything about yourself.
With Zcash, you… pic.twitter.com/cXacERLcN1
— Lord Peters (@SrPetersETH) November 2, 2025
Zcash uses zero-knowledge or ZK proofs. Do you remember what these are? It’s an encryption technique to prove something without revealing important information. For example, you may certify that you are 18 years of age or older to access the Service without disclosing your date of birth. Specifically, Zcash uses zk-SNARKs. This is a concise, non-interactive knowledge discussion with zero knowledge. It allows you to prove that a transaction is valid without revealing the sender, recipient, or amount.
Interesting fact: Zcash implemented zero-knowledge proofs in 2016.
It wasn’t until a few years later that Ethereum and everyone else started screaming, “This is it, that’s this.”Zcash has now been able to perform zk-rollups.
Privacy is not a trend. That’s the basics.$ZEC The owner knew all along.
Cowabunga! pic.twitter.com/jQVbDpK1CL
— Michelangelo.Zek ⓩ🛡️ (@BTCTurtle) November 3, 2025
Zcash price evolution is tied to narrative rotation and supply dynamics. Similar to Bitcoin, Zcash only has $21 million ZEC. There is also a halving schedule like Bitcoin. The most recent halving occurred in November 2024, reducing block rewards. However, the main factor is the market’s renewed focus on privacy, as mentioned above.
Current $ZEC price is $642. The stock is up 17% on the day and a whopping 1.335% over the past year. Since the beginning of October, the number has increased tenfold. Despite this, it is still 80% away from its ATH of $3,191 nine years ago. However, a rebound is expected first before reaching the highs.
Dash ($DASH)
Dash ($DASH) was also forked from Bitcoin, similar to Zcash. But Dash did this in 2014. It is specifically designed to act as a fast digital cash with low fee payments. Dash also offers optional privacy features. Use a two-tier network.
- Miners secure the chain.
- Masternodes enable features such as instant payments and mixing.
This is why Dash’s hybrid security model (PoW mining + chainlock secured by masternodes) shines.
Dash is powered by 51% attacks with staked masternodes and has instant permanent finality. There is no need to wait for confirmation, as the transaction is already irreversible immediately.
— Dash (@Dashpay) July 26, 2025
Optional privacy is provided by CoinJoin-style mixing functionality. This was previously called PrivateSend. However, this is not encryption and does not hide the blockchain.
During the Dash era, this feature was improved many times.
Various improvements have been made, including more than doubling round mixing, dramatically increasing speed, and randomizing rounds.
Now known simply as CoinJoin, it is a much more advanced iteration than the others. pic.twitter.com/9PamXZXXSAR
— Dash (@Dashpay) November 6, 2025
Instead, just mix coins between users through masternodes. As a result, transactions become difficult to track. Let me make this clear. Combine input from different users into one large collaborative transaction. Therefore, it is not possible to determine which input belongs to which output. External monitors and blockchain analysis tools cannot track specific fund flows.
In 2024, Dash privacy received two significant enhancements.
1: CoinJoin has been added to your mobile wallet with a set-it-and-forget option to keep your confidential funds always available.
2: Added username (stealth address). This allows you to make payments to your contacts without revealing their address. pic.twitter.com/UF6f4CaJGi
— Dash (@Dashpay) November 6, 2025
Like Zcash, Dash ($DASH) is also gaining momentum due to the renewed privacy debate. Liquidity has returned to the old payment-based coin. Recent technical breakouts are creating momentum. A major overhaul of Dash’s confidential payments is also planned.
The current price of $DASH is approximately $80. $DASH started pumping in early October. It’s up 131% in the past 30 days and 219% over the last year.
Railgun ($RAIL)
Railgun ($RAIL) is a decentralized privacy protocol and smart contract system. Designed to bring ZK privacy to on-chain assets. It can also be used in DeFi across EVM compatible networks. This allows users to “shield” their tokens or NFTs. So you can move them to your private pool. Here you can trade, exchange, lend, etc. without revealing your address, amount, or link.
Chain independent. This is not just limited to EVM chains. However, it is now primarily deployed in the EVM ecosystem. Achieve privacy using advanced encryption and smart contract design. Railgun uses zero-knowledge proofs such as ZK-SNARK. This allows you to verify ownership or the legitimacy of a transaction without revealing details.
RAILGUN uses ZK-SNARK to keep transactions private while remaining completely on-chain. No self-management, no managed keys, no bridges, no standalone chains.
With new wallets and SDK integration with this tech stack, privacy is becoming normal again, and it’s about time.
— RAILGUN – Private & Anonymous DeFi (@RAILGUN_Project) October 19, 2025
This is how the shield works. Users send their tokens to a “shielded pool” (private address) via a smart contract. Once inside, your balances, transactions, and addresses are encrypted/obfuscated. This system supports complex DeFi interactions. Think swaps, different assets, or automatic mixing. Increased usage increases the “noise” in the pool and increases anonymity.
Private DeFi is not just about private tokens.
— RAILGUN – Private & Anonymous DeFi (@RAILGUN_Project) October 30, 2025
Vitalik Buterin supported the railgun. That, combined with the current privacy boom, has helped. The price of $RAIL is $4.89. $RAIL became popular in early October. It rose nearly 40% on the day.
So, which is your favorite privacy coin? Do you agree that privacy should be a right, not an option? Let us know in the comments and follow us on X and Discord.
Disclaimer
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