Zcash (ZEC) has surged into positive territory with double-digit advances over the past 24 hours. As ZEC hovers above $380, the privacy coin Monero (XMR) is down 2% at $372. XMR price earlier dropped to lows of $360.

Zcash and Monero, two top privacy coins, have witnessed differing price movements on Monday as the overall cryptocurrency market remained largely subdued.

Bitcoin hovered just above $92,000 ahead of the highly anticipated Federal Reserve meeting, while BNB, Solana, and XRP all looked to mirror Ethereum’s slight gains.

Nonetheless, bulls’ failure to ignite a widespread rally sees many altcoins hover well off recent peaks, including Zcash and Monero.

Zcash posted gains of over 12% as the token’s value jumped from around $334 to near $400.

Per data from CoinMarketCap, the privacy coin reached highs of $398 across major crypto exchanges, extending gains above $380.

While current prices of $383 are well off the recent peaks above $700, buyers may fancy new momentum as ZEC benefits from the sentiment that saw it switch from a laggard into a top-20 cryptocurrency by market cap.

A surge in shielded transactions, with Zcash positioned as a private alternative to Bitcoin, highlights the confidence. Open interest in Zcash futures sits at over $783 million, down from $1.3 billion in November.

However, robust speculative engagement is intact as seen in the past 24 hours, with liquidations hitting over $10 million.

Coinglass data shows 80% of 24-hour liquidations for ZEC are shorts, likely caught off guard amid the sudden price jump.

Should Zcash breach the $400 resistance, bulls may push toward $500 and target the year-to-date peaks. On the flipside, a breakdown below $370 could give sellers an upper hand.

In contrast to Zcash Monero has dipped in the past 24 hours.

The privacy coin fell to lows of $360 earlier in the day, and now faces an uphill battle after fresh rejections around the $380 mark.

XMR price is currently around $372 and shows a decline of nearly 2% in the past 24 hours and 10% in the past week.

Comparatively, the ZEC price is up more than 11% in the same seven-day period.

Losses for Monero extended to four consecutive bearish daily candles on December 7, 2025. Bulls are therefore looking to prevent a fifth red candle.

Yet, as bears have recently erased most of November’s gains to highs of $470.

The dip to $360 thus leaves Monero vulnerable to further erosion if support falters. As with other altcoins, the primary drivers of Monero’s malaise revolve around macroeconomic pressures.

XMR also trades in a broadening wedge pattern, and the area around $400 has proved key to bears.

Elsewhere, futures open interest has contracted to $54 million, down from $67 million on December 1, 2025, and from a recent peak of $98 million on November 10,2025.

The token has also dropped amid a double-top formation at $435, which means a short term dip to support in the $335 region looms.

The post Zcash surges 12% as Monero slips: privacy coins diverge ahead of Fed meeting appeared first on CoinJournal.

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