ZEC reached a price above $1,300 on September 16, 2026, marking a 25% increase over 24 hours. This level had not been observed since late 2016. The market capitalization of the asset approached $22 billion during the session.
The growth was driven by three factors. Grayscale launched its spot Zcash ETF, ticker ZCSH, on August 25, 2026, which attracted over $463 million in assets. Additionally, the community approved the NU7 upgrade, which will reduce block generation time from 75 to 25 seconds.
The third factor was the liquidation of short positions exceeding $45 million in a single session. This forced buying accelerated the price rally. The surge occurred despite a cautious market environment ahead of an expected 25 basis point interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
