Zcash is holding around the psychologically important $1,000 mark as traders betting against ZEC continue to absorb heavy losses, but a derivatives market carrying more than $2.3 billion in open interest means the rally is becoming increasingly sensitive to leverage.
ZEC recently traded around $1,020, after breaking through $1,000 for the first time since its volatile early trading period. CoinGlass shows open interest at roughly $2.32 billion, with billions of dollars in futures volume changing hands over 24 hours.
The latest Coinalyze snapshot puts 24-hour ZEC liquidations at approximately $24.2 million, including $22.6 million in shorts against only about $1.5 million in long liquidations.
That makes the squeeze more significant than the percentage figure circulating in earlier reports.
$2.3 Billion in Open Interest Keeps the Rally Fragile
The original U.Today report cited $13.24 million in liquidations, including $11.26 million from shorts, after ZEC surged from about $805 on Sept. 3 to as high as $1,051 the following day. Its headline referenced a 424% liquidation imbalance while the article itself calculated 562%, illustrating how quickly derivatives figures were changing during the rally.
Newer data now shows the liquidation total has climbed substantially.
That matters because the move is occurring against unusually large leveraged positioning. Coinpaper's earlier coverage found that ZEC futures open interest had already reached about $2.3 billion as Zcash entered crypto's top 10 and short liquidations accelerated.
ZEC is also up roughly 27% over seven days, according to current CoinGlass data, while its market capitalization remains around $17 billion.
Zcash ETF Adds a Second Source of Demand
The rally is not solely a derivatives story.
Grayscale's Zcash ETF, ZCSH, began trading on NYSE Arca on Aug. 25 after the former Grayscale Zcash Trust was converted into an exchange-traded product. SEC filings confirm the fund's registration and NYSE Arca listing.
Grayscale reports that ZCSH held $463.2 million in assets as of Sept. 4, including roughly 444,608 ZEC. That compares with about $346 million in AUM on Aug. 31, although part of that increase reflects ZEC's sharp price appreciation rather than new investor money.
More directly, The Block estimates ZCSH attracted at least $34.4 million in net inflows since its launch.
That institutional channel adds another dimension to a rally Coinpaper was already tracking when the ETF filing moved forward in August. Regulatory uncertainty around the project also eased earlier this year after the SEC ended its Zcash Foundation investigation without enforcement action.
For now, ZEC's ability to stay above $1,000 shows buyers are still absorbing selling pressure. But with more than $2.3 billion in derivatives positions outstanding, the same leverage that amplified the short squeeze could also magnify the next move in either direction.