At the start of 2025, Privacy Coins suddenly became an unexpected focus in the crypto market. ZEC and DASH, once suppressed by regulations, have recently shown a surprisingly strong performance. What logic is hidden behind this wave of market movement?

Let's first talk about the subtle changes in the regulatory environment. Over the past two years, the crypto space has indeed become a bit weary from compliance, with ETF listings and institutional entry, making the entire market increasingly resemble a replica of traditional finance. However, the topic of privacy touches upon the fundamentalism of cryptocurrency—decentralization and anonymity. Interestingly, starting in the second half of 2024, U.S. regulators have classified privacy technology as "a category for technical discussion", while the EU is focusing on the compliance processes of exchanges rather than the technology itself, and Asian regulators primarily focus on the review mechanisms. This is equivalent to indirectly loosening the constraints on the narrative of privacy.

The movement of funds is more intriguing. On-chain data shows that some OG-level addresses and Asian institutional teams began quietly accumulating Privacy Coins as early as the fourth quarter of last year, with some Ethereum whales also increasing their holdings. This round of price increase does not seem to be the result of retail FOMO, but rather looks like a concentrated rally after prior positioning.

The technical aspects are also quietly evolving. ZEC's Halo2 zero-knowledge proof and Orchard privacy protocol have matured significantly after years of refinement, and the wallet experience and ecosystem compatibility continue to be optimized. With the explosion of AI applications and the popularization of on-chain payments, privacy protection has shifted from being "optional" to a "must-have configuration"—who would want their transaction records and identity information to be completely transparent? Privacy coins, as the most direct solution, naturally benefit from this wave of dividends.

Of course, the projects that can truly succeed rely on technological accumulation and ecological depth. Those air coins that only rely on conceptual hype will eventually be validated by the market.

How long do you think this wave of the Privacy Coin market can last? Besides ZEC, what other projects are worth paying attention to?