Zcash slipped into a correction this month as traders wrestle with heavy liquidations and fading short-term momentum — even as the network gears up for a major protocol upgrade in early November.
Price and market action
- ZEC rebounded roughly 2.6% on Oct. 25 to about $1,184, recovering from intraday weakness. Over the previous 24 hours it traded between $1,120.66 and $1,223.01 on roughly $575 million of volume. The coin is up about 5.4% over seven days but remains down roughly 25.3% for the month.
- The pullback follows September’s push toward the mid-$1,600s–$1,700s and a string of volatile sessions where ZEC repeatedly failed to hold the $1,200 area.
Derivatives pressure and liquidations
- Derivatives markets have been punishing leveraged longs. CoinGlass data put ZEC liquidations at $14.02 million over 24 hours, with about $10.03 million in long liquidations and $3.99 million in shorts. In the prior 12-hour slice, liquidations were $1.57 million (longs $893,770; shorts $679,790).
- Open interest has contracted, too: ZEC futures OI fell about 12.45% to $2.37 billion, while futures turnover dropped roughly 10.3% to ~$7.23 billion as traders pared risk. Platform-specific metrics show heavy long skew on some venues (Hyperliquid long positioning was reported near 82.2%), but that does not necessarily map to the entire market.
Technical picture
- Short-term technicals remain neutral-to-bearish. In a supplied snapshot ZEC was trading below its 20-day simple moving average ($1,213.77), with Bollinger Bands spanning roughly $1,084 (lower) to $1,343 (upper). Trading under the middle band suggests buyers have not yet retaken control after the September rally.
- The Relative Strength Index sat around 46.9 (its 45.8 moving average), signaling a modest recovery in buying but still below bullish territory.
- Immediate support sits around $1,175–$1,180, then $1,100 and $1,084; a daily close beneath those levels could open the door to another test of $1,000. To flip the bias, reclaiming $1,214 would put $1,300 and the $1,343 band back in focus.
- Crypto analyst BitGuru flagged resistance in the $1,220–$1,270 zone on the 4‑hour chart, warning that another rejection there could push ZEC toward $1,140, $1,090 or even $1,040.
Network upgrade: NU7
- Beyond price action, ecosystem developments are front of mind. The Zcash Foundation confirmed on Oct. 22 that Network Upgrade 7 (NU7) will activate at block 3,543,405, expected around Nov. 5. The Zebra 7.0.0 client includes support for the new consensus rules.
- NU7 shortens the target block interval from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, meaning first confirmations should arrive roughly three times faster. It also introduces a mechanism that temporarily reserves a portion of transaction fees to be used for future block rewards — a funding tweak, not a change to Zcash’s issuance policy.
- Important operational notes: NU7 does not alter ZEC’s 21 million supply cap or accelerate scheduled daily issuance. Node operators must install compatible software before activation to stay in consensus. The upgrade’s activation height is fixed; the calendar date will vary with actual block production.
Longer-term upgrades and institutional interest
- Zcash’s roadmap continues to emphasize shielded transactions and defenses against future cryptographic risks. The Ironwood shielded-pool upgrade earlier in 2026 strengthened supply-accounting protections after issues with the older Orchard pool and added provisions to support recovery options should quantum threats materialize — but it does not make existing transactions quantum-resistant today.
- Institutional interest remains a parallel story. Earlier this month, a proposed spot ZEC fund from Winklevoss Asset Services was filed, while flows into existing ZEC investment products have been mixed. Any proposed ETF remains subject to regulatory review and is not guaranteed to launch.
What to watch
- Traders will be watching price reaction around the $1,175–$1,220 range, how derivatives positioning evolves as NU7 approaches, and whether node operators complete upgrades in time. The upgrade’s faster confirmations and the temporary fee-reserve mechanism add a new dynamic to fees and miner rewards that markets may price in ahead of activation.
Price and market action
- ZEC rebounded roughly 2.6% on Oct. 25 to about $1,184, recovering from intraday weakness. Over the previous 24 hours it traded between $1,120.66 and $1,223.01 on roughly $575 million of volume. The coin is up about 5.4% over seven days but remains down roughly 25.3% for the month.
- The pullback follows September’s push toward the mid-$1,600s–$1,700s and a string of volatile sessions where ZEC repeatedly failed to hold the $1,200 area.
Derivatives pressure and liquidations
- Derivatives markets have been punishing leveraged longs. CoinGlass data put ZEC liquidations at $14.02 million over 24 hours, with about $10.03 million in long liquidations and $3.99 million in shorts. In the prior 12-hour slice, liquidations were $1.57 million (longs $893,770; shorts $679,790).
- Open interest has contracted, too: ZEC futures OI fell about 12.45% to $2.37 billion, while futures turnover dropped roughly 10.3% to ~$7.23 billion as traders pared risk. Platform-specific metrics show heavy long skew on some venues (Hyperliquid long positioning was reported near 82.2%), but that does not necessarily map to the entire market.
Technical picture
- Short-term technicals remain neutral-to-bearish. In a supplied snapshot ZEC was trading below its 20-day simple moving average ($1,213.77), with Bollinger Bands spanning roughly $1,084 (lower) to $1,343 (upper). Trading under the middle band suggests buyers have not yet retaken control after the September rally.
- The Relative Strength Index sat around 46.9 (its 45.8 moving average), signaling a modest recovery in buying but still below bullish territory.
- Immediate support sits around $1,175–$1,180, then $1,100 and $1,084; a daily close beneath those levels could open the door to another test of $1,000. To flip the bias, reclaiming $1,214 would put $1,300 and the $1,343 band back in focus.
- Crypto analyst BitGuru flagged resistance in the $1,220–$1,270 zone on the 4‑hour chart, warning that another rejection there could push ZEC toward $1,140, $1,090 or even $1,040.
Network upgrade: NU7
- Beyond price action, ecosystem developments are front of mind. The Zcash Foundation confirmed on Oct. 22 that Network Upgrade 7 (NU7) will activate at block 3,543,405, expected around Nov. 5. The Zebra 7.0.0 client includes support for the new consensus rules.
- NU7 shortens the target block interval from 75 seconds to 25 seconds, meaning first confirmations should arrive roughly three times faster. It also introduces a mechanism that temporarily reserves a portion of transaction fees to be used for future block rewards — a funding tweak, not a change to Zcash’s issuance policy.
- Important operational notes: NU7 does not alter ZEC’s 21 million supply cap or accelerate scheduled daily issuance. Node operators must install compatible software before activation to stay in consensus. The upgrade’s activation height is fixed; the calendar date will vary with actual block production.
Longer-term upgrades and institutional interest
- Zcash’s roadmap continues to emphasize shielded transactions and defenses against future cryptographic risks. The Ironwood shielded-pool upgrade earlier in 2026 strengthened supply-accounting protections after issues with the older Orchard pool and added provisions to support recovery options should quantum threats materialize — but it does not make existing transactions quantum-resistant today.
- Institutional interest remains a parallel story. Earlier this month, a proposed spot ZEC fund from Winklevoss Asset Services was filed, while flows into existing ZEC investment products have been mixed. Any proposed ETF remains subject to regulatory review and is not guaranteed to launch.
What to watch
- Traders will be watching price reaction around the $1,175–$1,220 range, how derivatives positioning evolves as NU7 approaches, and whether node operators complete upgrades in time. The upgrade’s faster confirmations and the temporary fee-reserve mechanism add a new dynamic to fees and miner rewards that markets may price in ahead of activation.