A newly created wallet withdrew 7,714 ZEC, worth roughly $4.12 million, from Kraken in a single session. The wallet showed no prior activity, which reduces the likelihood of short-term trading intent.
The withdrawal occurred in coordinated batches, signaling deliberate execution. However, price did not react immediately, showing that derivatives liquidity absorbed the move.
Even so, exchange-side supply tightened meaningfully. Therefore, immediate sell pressure weakened structurally rather than emotionally.
Historically, similar ZEC outflows preceded delayed upside moves, not instant spikes. Therefore, Spot behavior now contradicts prevailing bearish sentiment across derivatives markets.
Rounded bottom tightens beneath key resistance
Zcash [ZEC] defended the $300–$320 demand zone multiple times, forming a rounded bottom after a prolonged decline. That base marked trend exhaustion rather than a relief bounce.
From there, price reclaimed $401 and later pushed through $528, confirming higher lows. At press time, Zcash traded near $536, pressing into the $520–$550 resistance zone.
This area aligns with prior breakdown structure and short-term supply. However, pullbacks remain shallow, showing controlled selling.
Above this zone, the neckline resistance between $680 and $720 stands as the major barrier. A clean reclaim opens continuation toward the $800 psychological level.
Meanwhile, MACD lines turned positive, with expanding histogram bars supporting momentum recovery.
Why shorts still dominate positioning
Binance’s Zcash perpetual data showed that 65.35% of accounts short versus 34.65% long, producing a Long/Short Ratio of 0.53. Such dominance usually aligns with strong downside continuation.
However, price refused to break lower. Instead, ZEC continued forming higher lows above reclaimed support. This mismatch suggested positioning risk rather than trend conviction.
Moreover, shorts kept adding exposure without forcing acceptance below $401. As a result, bearish pressure lost its efficiency.
Each failed breakdown increases stress on short positions. Consequently, market dynamics shift from trend-driven selling to positioning-driven risk.
ZEC liquidations expose growing short stress
Liquidation data confirmed that stress. At the time of writing, short liquidations reached $1.77 million, while long liquidations totaled only $182,000.
Binance accounted for $967,260 in short liquidations, while Hyperliquid added $411,730. These liquidations triggered during modest upside moves toward $535–$540, not during breakouts.
That reaction showed that shorts lacked tolerance even for small price advances. Meanwhile, longs absorbed pullbacks without forced exits.
Therefore, price stability continues to punish shorts more than buyers. This imbalance increases the probability of volatility expansion to the upside.
ZEC funding cools without leverage chasing
OI-Weighted Funding Rates stabilized near +0.0027% at press time, recovering from deeply negative readings earlier in December.
This shift signals fading bearish dominance without aggressive long leverage entering the market.
Importantly, funding remains subdued rather than overheated. Therefore, upside potential builds without excessive leverage risk.
Open Interest also holds steady instead of collapsing, showing repositioning rather than capitulation.
Consequently, Zcash trades in a structurally healthy recovery phase, where pressure can resolve directionally without leverage-driven instability.
To sum up, ZEC’s setup now favors upside continuation as spot accumulation tightens supply while derivatives traders remain heavily skewed short.
Liquidation data confirmed growing stress on bearish positions, and funding stabilization showed that leverage no longer suppressed price.
With sellers losing efficiency and shorts absorbing repeated pressure, the market shifts toward forced repositioning.
This alignment of shrinking exchange supply, crowded shorts, and controlled leverage supports a sustained move toward $800, driven by pressure rather than speculation.
Final Thoughts
- ZEC is likely to react with a sharp upside expansion as positioning pressure forces a market reset.
- The current setup supports a continuation move toward the $800 region as bearish control breaks down.
