Zcash's market capitalization surpasses Monero, and the Privacy Coin landscape may welcome a shift in power.

On November 3, CoinDesk reported that the privacy-focused crypto asset Zcash (ZEC) has surpassed the long-dominant Monero (XMR) in market capitalization, which may signify a “power shift” in the Privacy Coin space. ZEC's market capitalization first exceeded XMR last Friday, remaining above its “predecessor” for several hours after rising nearly 50% in the previous seven days. Throughout the weekend, ZEC maintained its lead, with its market capitalization peaking at $7.2 billion, while XMR hovered around $6.3 billion. Recently, both have market capitalizations of approximately $6.4 billion. Zcash was launched in 2016, while Monero was created in 2014. The biggest difference between them lies in their privacy mechanisms: Zcash uses an “optional privacy” model, allowing users to choose between transparent or encrypted (shielded) transactions; Monero's transactions are encrypted by default, lacking selectivity. This flexibility makes Zcash more easily accepted by traders and institutions, especially those looking to balance privacy and Compliance. In contrast, Monero has faced delisting from several mainstream trading platforms due to AML and KYC issues.