Privacy coins in the spotlight: Can Dash replicate Zcash's "rhyme" market trend?

When we look at the price charts of Dash and Zcash, it seems like we’re reading two chapters of the same story. The former has just broken the seven-year downtrend channel, while the latter successfully broke through a few weeks ago. Their chart structures are eerily similar—prompting the question: Can Dash rhyme with Zcash’s gains?

Where is the “rhyme” in the chart

Zcash(ZEC) had a textbook-level breakout in September. Starting from around $60, it surged all the way to $390, an increase of nearly 550%. The key isn’t how fast it rose, but the complete reversal of structure—the 200-week exponential moving average flipped from resistance to support, and two key Fibonacci levels were simultaneously activated.

Dash(DASH) now happens to be at the same position—the upper boundary of a seven-year downtrend channel, with the price oscillating around $98-$100. Will history repeat? Not necessarily, but the rhyme pattern in the chart is definitely worth paying attention to.

Technical perspective: the duality of strength and risk

Look at a detail: when Zcash broke out, RSI stayed above 70 and held there, indicating that the rally was not just a false fire but a genuine structural breakout.

Dash’s current RSI is at 78, appearing even more aggressive than ZEC. But this is a double-edged sword—when RSI is this high, it usually means the rebound potential has been largely exhausted, and further upward movement requires continuous influx of capital. If a breakdown occurs, Fibonacci extension points to $98-$120, offering theoretically a 4x space.

But here’s the “but”: in 2018, 2021, and 2022, Dash retreated three times from this level, with each decline exceeding 85%. After the most recent failure, the price dropped to $69, with deeper corrections touching the $14-$16 support zone.

Technical genes determine different fates

Both coins originate from the Bitcoin codebase, but their privacy tech routes are completely different.

Zcash uses zk-SNARKs—zero-knowledge proofs that can verify transaction validity while hiding all transaction details. This sounds like “black tech,” but it’s actually becoming the core technology stack for Ethereum scaling solutions. Over the past year, the ZK ecosystem has exploded, and Zcash, as an early practitioner, has regained the spotlight.

Dash employs mixing routes—using masternodes to obfuscate transaction sources. It’s not fully encrypted but sufficient. Simpler and more straightforward, with lower technical complexity but higher execution efficiency.

What’s the result? Zcash’s rise is supported by technological narrative—ZK proofs are poised to become the future of blockchain efficiency. Dash’s rise is more about market rotation—the price is rebounding from an extremely undervalued position toward equilibrium. One is driven by new concepts, the other by technical triggers.

Market reality: the invisible resistance of regulatory attitudes

This point might be overlooked by chart enthusiasts. Zcash is gradually being viewed as a “privacy protection technology”—a neutral or even positive narrative. Meanwhile, Dash is still positioned by some markets as a “payment coin,” facing stricter scrutiny on certain exchanges. Limited liquidity can become a ceiling when large funds enter.

However, Dash is not a dying project. Fast transaction speeds, stable masternode incentives, and a governance system that hasn’t undergone major revisions for years all indicate that Dash is a “steady but unremarkable” project.

Chart rhyme, but narrative must match

This is the key—long-term suppression → supply exhaustion → minimal catalysts → explosive price increase—this pattern applies to both charts.

Zcash caught the ZK tech narrative wave, with both technical triggers and narrative explosion happening simultaneously, combining two forces.

Dash has a chart, but perhaps lacks a compelling narrative.

So the question becomes: How far can a breakout driven solely by technical breakdowns go?

If Dash truly breaks above $100 with conviction, there’s theoretically room for further movement. But if it only rebounds briefly and fails again, it’s “chart rhyme, narrative mismatch”—and history may repeat itself.

The crucial factor is whether trading volume and market enthusiasm can keep pace. Without new reasons to support it, pure chart repetition often doesn’t go far.

Price quick update: ZEC currently at $393.33, DASH at $41.68, BTC at $87.09K.