Arthur Hayes has made Zcash a key part of his crypto strategy. In an interview with Laura Shin, founder of Unchained, he said ZEC is now “probably my largest position outside of Bitcoin.” The BitMEX co-founder sees this as a bet on growing demand for financial privacy, as AI, big tech, and governments make it easier to analyze activity on public blockchains. Hayes believes Zcash is the strongest privacy-focused asset in crypto, though he admits the debate between Zcash, Monero, and other privacy coins isn’t settled. “I think Zcash is the best,” he said. He added that he’s “not a cryptographer,” but formed his opinion by reading different arguments and talking to developers working directly on privacy systems.
Hayes isn’t arguing that Bitcoin should become fully private. He noted that Bitcoin’s transparent ledger has benefits for accountability, but said that transparency comes with a growing downside as surveillance tools improve. “With AI, big tech and big government, it’s very trivial to de-anonymize transactions,” he said.
Related Reading: Zcash Hits New YTD High As Multicoin Discloses ZEC Bet
In Hayes’ view, this creates room for a separate privacy asset to gain value alongside Bitcoin, rather than being built into it. He described Zcash and Monero as trading at very low values compared to BTC, and called the setup asymmetric if privacy demand becomes more obvious to investors. The catalyst, he believes, isn’t just regulation or user preference, but the rapid improvement of AI systems that can link activity across public data sets.
Arthur on why the Zcash and NEAR integration is the quietly building mechanism that flips NEAR from inflationary to deflationary “Shielded Zcash lets you swap and send any coin, USDT on Tron, Bitcoin, anything, and that transaction will not point back to you. Completely… https://t.co/AOWKNsDRbc pic.twitter.com/tytoAgM5q0 — Laura Shin (@laurashin) May 12, 2026
Hayes Connects Zcash And NEAR In Latest Essay
Hayes expanded on this idea in his latest Crypto Trader Digest essay, “The Butterfly Touch,” published on his Substack on May 11. In the essay, he argued that rising liquidity in dollars and yuan—driven by AI infrastructure spending, geopolitical conflict, and renewed credit creation—has reopened the risk-on window for crypto markets. He said Bitcoin bottomed earlier this year at $60,000 and argued that a move back to $126,000 is a “foregone conclusion” if fiat liquidity keeps expanding.
Related Reading: Zcash Is Crypto’s Most Mispriced Asset, Cypherpunk CIO Says
The essay’s altcoin section was more direct. Hayes wrote that it’s “time to shitcoin,” noting that Hyperliquid and Zcash are already large enough positions for Maelstrom, while NEAR is his “next favorite” trade. He said his next essay would explain how the “privacy narrative” combined with Near Intents could create a “positive cash flow situation” for the protocol.
This links Zcash and NEAR under a broader theme of privacy and utility. Zcash is Hayes’ preferred pure-play privacy asset, while NEAR looks like the next asset he wants to tie into that theme through intent-based execution and potential protocol-level cash flow. He argued that this setup could help reverse NEAR’s weak token performance and possibly push it back toward older cycle highs.
For Zcash, Hayes’ case is simpler. He said privacy will likely become more valuable as public blockchains become easier to analyze with increasingly capable AI systems. “People want that privacy,” he said. “And there will be a private alternative.” At press time, Zcash traded at $541.75.
Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about Arthur Hayes naming Zcash as his largest crypto holding besides Bitcoin
BeginnerLevel Questions
Q Who is Arthur Hayes and why should I care what he holds
A Hes the cofounder of BitMEX a major crypto exchange Hes a wellknown trader and commentator so his public portfolio moves often influence market sentiment
Q What is Zcash
A Zcash is a privacyfocused cryptocurrency Unlike Bitcoin which is pseudonymous Zcash uses advanced cryptography to hide the sender receiver and amount of a transaction
Q Why would a famous trader hold Zcash instead of just Bitcoin
A Hayes believes privacy coins are the next big thing He thinks as governments regulate public blockchains like Bitcoin people will demand private money to avoid surveillance
Q Is Zcash legal to buy and hold
A Yes in most countries However some exchanges have delisted it due to regulatory pressure Always check your local laws
IntermediateLevel Questions
Q What makes Zcash different from other privacy coins like Monero
A Zcash offers selective disclosure You can choose to share transaction details with auditors or tax authorities Monero is private by default and nontransparent Hayes has praised Zcashs compliancefriendly design
Q How did Arthur Hayes publicly disclose his Zcash position
A He stated it in his Crypto Trader blog post and in interviews saying its his biggest bet outside of Bitcoin He didnt give exact numbers but called it a sizable position
Q Doesnt Zcash have a backdoor or trusted setup issue
A Zcash launched with a trusted setup ceremony Critics worry the founding team could have generated fake coins However the setup was done by multiple parties and the protocol later upgraded to Halo Arc removing the need for a trusted setup
Q Why did Hayes call Zcash the only real private money in crypto