Monero (XMR) has once again topped the rankings of privacy cryptocurrencies, approaching its price record. The asset's growth comes amid a crisis in the Zcash (ZEC) ecosystem.

Source: CoinGecko.

As of this writing, XMR is trading above $462, which is 14.7% below its peak of $542 reached in January 2015. The asset has been steadily rising for several weeks, outpacing most competitors in the sector.

This current trend contrasts sharply with the second half of 2025, when investors favored Zcash while Monero faced technical challenges (a major block reorganization) and criticism over mining centralization.

The situation has changed dramatically: ZEC plummeted 15% in a single day following news of the entire Electric Coin Company team leaving. CEO Josh Swihart attributed the departure to a conflict with the board of the parent organization, Bootstrap.

The developers plan to establish a new organization; however, the sudden exit of the team has raised questions about Zcash's roadmap and development coordination. This uncertainty halted the asset's rally and triggered a sell-off.

The main point of contention was an attempt to monetize the protocol, including the "privatization" of the flagship Zashi wallet. The Bootstrap board blocked these initiatives due to concerns over legal and corporate risks.

The departing team has already announced the launch of an alternative wallet, CashZ, based on Zashi's code, promising users an easy migration.

“Nonprofits are nitpicking, while tech startups are rewriting the rules,” Swihart stated.

Data from Santiment confirms the project's issues. Despite a 15-fold increase in ZEC's market cap in the fall of 2025, developer activity has plummeted to 2021 lows since November.

📊 Unless you lived under a crypto rock, you likely watched the headlines pour in about Zcash in late 2025. The decade-old privacy coin multiplied its market cap by ~15x between September 22nd and November 16th.

🧑‍💻 However, we have been watching $ZEC's development activity… pic.twitter.com/MORo1sD7ix

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) January 8, 2026

Over the past two months, the coin's price has corrected by 40%. Analysts noted that a slowdown in development historically signals that altcoins may lag behind the market.

It is worth mentioning that analysts from a16z crypto have stated that privacy will become the main competitive advantage for projects in 2026.