Grayscale is executing a 3-for-1 forward share split for its Zcash ETF, known as ZCSH. Shareholders of record at the close of trading on September 28 will receive two additional shares for each share they own after the market closes on September 29, with adjusted trading beginning on September 30. The ETF has drawn more than $233 million in investments since its launch on August 25, bringing total net assets to around $890 million as of September 17. Investors have shown strong interest in the fund, including more than $112 million in inflows on September 8 and $46.6 million on another day during the week of September 14.
The underlying Zcash token has surged more than 2,500% over the past year and recently reached an intraday high of $1,521. The level has been described as an effective all-time high for Zcash, although unusual trading immediately after the cryptocurrency’s 2016 launch briefly produced prices above $3,000. The split will reduce the price of each ZCSH share to about one-third of its previous level while tripling the number of shares investors hold. The split itself does not change the total value of an investor’s position.
The ETF is the first spot exchange-traded fund to hold Zcash’s native token directly, offering U.S. investors exposure to the privacy-focused cryptocurrency. Zcash uses a cryptographic method called zk-SNARKs that allows users to shield transaction details, keeping them private from public view. The Zcash network has seen increased mining activity, with its solution rate climbing to nearly 32 GSol/s and mining difficulty reaching approximately 291 million.
A major upgrade called NU7 is scheduled for November 5, which aims to reduce block times on the network. The upgrade is expected to cut block times from about 75 seconds to 25 seconds. Zcash has also seen strong buying as the price has climbed.
Despite the rally, some traders who had shorted Zcash have suffered significant losses, with one account losing more than $10.68 million in a single trade. Hyperliquid data shows that the account previously had a winning streak of 26 trades and an 89% win rate across 47 positions before the reversal. Garrett Jin currently holds the largest remaining short position on Hyperliquid for Zcash, with an unrealized loss of about $33.87 million. His 1,333 Bitcoin long position was showing a gain of about $4.41 million, partially offsetting the Zcash loss.
Other Zcash short sellers are also under pressure, with several accounts carrying multi-million-dollar unrealized losses. The total open interest on Hyperliquid’s Zcash perpetual contracts is around 574,045 ZEC, valued at approximately $885 million. Market watchers are closely watching whether spot demand can continue to support the price rally in the coming weeks.
IMAGE: stevepb / Pixabay