Zcash is seemingly winning this bullish cycle in the crypto market. ZEC is up nearly 100% over the past month, crossing  $1,000 for the first time in almost a decade.

ZEC briefly climbed above $1,045 on Friday. The move pushed its market value to roughly $17 billion and brought the privacy coin back to four figures for the first time since the chaotic opening days of trading in 2016.

Those early prices came when very little ZEC was circulating, making them poor comparisons with today’s market. So, how far will Zcash go in this cycle? 

Why Zcash Suddenly Exploded

Several forces have converged behind the rally.

Grayscale launched its US-listed Zcash ETF in late August, opening ZEC exposure to traditional investors through brokerage accounts. The fund has since attracted fresh inflows while holding more than 400,000 ZEC.

Meanwhile, demand for privacy-focused cryptocurrencies has returned. More ZEC is moving into shielded pools, while recent technical upgrades have made private transactions faster.

The latest leg higher also had help from derivatives traders.

Roughly $34.5 million in ZEC short positions were liquidated during the breakout. Traders betting against Zcash were forced to buy back their positions as prices rose, adding fuel to the move.

However, leverage has continued building after the squeeze. Total ZEC open interest has climbed toward $2.4 billion, up sharply from around $1.6 billion days earlier.

That makes what happens around $1,000 especially important.

Can Zcash Hold $1,000?

The short-term chart still favors buyers.

On the one-hour chart, ZEC’s 20-period exponential moving average has risen to roughly $1,000. That means the psychological price level now lines up with a widely watched short-term trend indicator.

The first important zone sits between roughly $985 and $1,005.

If ZEC falls into that area and buyers repeatedly push it back above $1,000, the breakout begins to look more durable. A move through the recent $1,045-$1,055 high could then open another attempt at $1,100.

However, momentum is already stretched.

ZEC’s daily Relative Strength Index is close to 80, a level commonly associated with an overheated market. The four-hour RSI is around 70.

That does not automatically mean the rally is ending. Strong markets can remain overbought for long periods. It does mean traders should expect sharper swings.

If $1,000 fails, the next major test sits around $935-$955. Several short-term moving averages converge in that region, making it the clearest area where buyers could attempt to form another higher low.

A deeper fall toward $900 would weaken the structure further. Below roughly $850, ZEC would return toward the area where its latest breakout began.

For now, the larger trend remains firmly upward. ZEC trades well above its major daily moving averages, while each recent correction has produced a higher low.

The bigger risk comes from leverage.

Open interest has surged alongside price. If funding rates also become heavily positive, too many traders may end up crowded into leveraged long positions. That could turn a routine pullback into a rapid liquidation event.

So $1,000 matters twice: as a psychological milestone and as the first serious test of whether this rally can build a stable base after an explosive run.

Source: BeInCrypto