Zcash's price has dropped roughly 23% from its Sept. 27 peak of $1,697, falling to $1,304 by Oct. 3 as Grayscale's spot ZEC ETF logged its first losing week since its August debut. Futures leverage has unwound alongside the slide, leaving traders focused on whether the $1,270 to $1,300 zone holds.
Zcash Price Gets Clobbered After September's Run
Zcash spent September climbing hard, then the tape turned. ZEC touched $1,697 on Sept. 27 before sliding to $1,304 by Oct. 3, a roughly 23% drop in less than a week. The retreat broke through the $1,500 level, then $1,400.
At the same time, Grayscale's spot zcash ETF, known as ZCSH, suffered something it hadn't seen since launching in August: a losing week. Around $93 million left ZCSH through Oct. 2, reversing a flow that had tightened available ZEC supply during September.
$93 Million Heads for the Exits
The ETF reversal matters because ZCSH owns ZEC outright rather than futures. During September, in-kind creations parked ZEC inside the fund and away from the open market. Redemptions work the opposite way — authorized participants receive ZEC back and can sell it, turning a structural buyer into a potential source of supply.
The outflows built through the week: $8.12 million left on Sept. 28, then $30.25 million on Sept. 30, about $28.26 million on Oct. 1, and $26.93 million on Oct. 2. Cumulative net inflows fell to $212.56 million, while assets under management dropped from a September peak near $979 million to roughly $751 million. Digital Currency Group, Grayscale's parent, had supplied about $100 million of earlier creation through an in-kind swap of 85,705.32563297 ZEC on Sept. 8, so outside investors contributed less to the headline inflow total than the raw numbers suggest.
Falling Price Flushes Out Leverage
Leverage played a role too. Futures open interest dropped from a September peak above $3.4 billion to roughly $2.5 billion, according to coinglass.com data cited in the report. Traders who piled in during the run to $1,500-$1,700 were caught off guard once the price rolled over. Short liquidations had helped propel the price higher during September's climb, but once the daily trend cracked, leverage began punishing late longs instead. Still, 24-hour liquidations stood around $1.03 million by Oct. 4, modest next to September's squeezes.
The Price Level That Now Holds All the Cards
ZEC's spot value bounced to roughly $1,333 to $1,337 by Oct. 4, up about 2% to 2.5% over 24 hours. The daily relative strength index sits near 50.6, squarely neutral rather than signaling an exhausted market. The immediate test sits around $1,270 to $1,300, with a loss of that shelf putting roughly $1,155 into view. Bulls would need to reclaim $1,360, then $1,380 to $1,425, before another run toward $1,500 looks convincing.
ZCSH remains net positive since Aug. 25, and shielded holdings remain above 4.89 million ZEC. What vanished wasn't the privacy coin's base of holders but September's marginal buyer — and now the $1,270 to $1,300 zone has to do what the ETF briefly stopped doing: keep finding buyers.
Source: Bitcoin News
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