Altcoin Market Down 58% From Peak, Privacy Cryptos Gain 213%

The privacy sector has surged 213% since the October peak while the median altcoin lost 58%, according to Glassnode. It all hinges on a single token, Zcash. The article Altcoin Market Down 58% From Peak, Privacy Cryptos Gain 213% appeared first on Journal du Coin.

The current digital asset landscape is undergoing a deep correction phase, marked by a striking divergence between various asset classes. Nearly a year after the October 2025 peak, most altcoins are struggling to regain their former glory, with the median asset posting a 58% depreciation. While traditionally strong sectors like decentralized finance, artificial intelligence, and layer-1 solutions are suffering significant pullbacks, one notable exception has emerged: privacy-focused cryptocurrencies.

This specific category has defied expectations, recording a spectacular 213% gain since last October. However, this resilience is not the result of widespread growth within the segment but relies heavily on the exceptional performance of a single project: Zcash (ZEC). The token has seen a meteoric rise, jumping from 82nd to 7th place globally in terms of market capitalization, and now accounts for approximately 62% of the total weight of this privacy sector on its own.

An analysis of the figures reveals a mixed reality. While the total capitalization of privacy assets has quadrupled, growing from $7.1 billion to $33.6 billion in one year, this improvement masks a tight dependency on the trajectory of Zcash. Without its major impact, the growth of the privacy asset basket would be significantly more modest, illustrating the extreme volatility and concentration of the current market. Prominent figures in the sector, such as Arthur Hayes, had anticipated this shift, establishing privacy as a key theme of this economic cycle.

Beyond the data, these movements underscore a paradigm shift in investment strategies. The example of personalities like David Hoffman, who recently reoriented his positions away from the Ethereum ecosystem to diversify his portfolio into more dynamic assets, highlights a growing desire to break free from dominant narratives. In short, while the privacy crypto sector stands out as the sole performance hub in a gloomy market, it serves as a reminder to investors that diversification remains essential to avoid becoming overly dependent on the isolated success of a single protocol.