Zcash extends gains as the broader crypto market underperforms

The cryptocurrency market has been bearish over the past 24 hours, with Bitcoin and Ether currently in the red. Bitcoin hit the $70,000 mark on Monday but is now down 1.4% and is trading around $68,400.

Ether also risks dropping below $2,000 if the selloff persists. However, ZEC, the native coin of the Zcash ecosystem, is not affected by the current market conditions. 

ZEC is up by 4.6% at press time on Tuesday, attempting to break above a resistance trendline and reverse the prevailing five-month decline. 

A double-digit surge in ZEC futures Open Interest (OI) since Monday indicates renewed retail strength for the privacy coin. 

Zcash derivatives push price higher

ZEC is one of the best performers among the top 30 cryptocurrencies by market cap in the last 24 hours. The coin is trading at $265 at the moment and could rally higher in the near term.

The bullish performance comes as Zcash is gaining retail momentum amid broader market volatility ahead of the looming US-Iran deadline.

Data obtained from CoinGlass reveals that ZEC’s futures Open Interest (OI) now reads US$514.3 million (approx. $716.9 million), up over 10% in the last 24 hours, indicating a risk-on sentiment among retail traders that is driving a positional buildup. 

Furthermore, total liquidations for ZEC over the same period amount to US$1.6 million (approx. $2.2 million), led by US$1.1 million (approx. $1.5 million) in short liquidations.

The 24-hour long-to-short ratio is 1.0751, suggesting that long positions outnumber short positions, consistent with buy-side dominance. 

This impressive performance is also reflected on the network side. Adoption of Zcash for privacy via shielded ZEC tokens has plateaued. 

According to Zkp.baby, shielded ZEC tokens account for 31.13% of the total supply, and a surge in adoption could drive spot prices higher.

Will Zcash hit the $290 swing high soon?

The ZEC/USD 4-hour chart is bullish and efficient as Zcash is one of the best performers in the market so far this week. 

The coin extended its gains above the $250 psychological level and the 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $248 at press time on Tuesday.

However, ZEC is still trading below the 100 and 200-day EMAs, signaling an emerging recovery within a broader corrective context.

Currently, the near-term bias remains bullish as ZEC tests a descending resistance trendline near $260. If the daily candle closes above the $260 psychological level, it would expose the 100-day and 200-day EMA clustered at $273 and $276, respectively.

Surpassing the 100-day and 200-day EMAS could pave the way for ZEC to test the February 14 high at $333 and expose higher levels.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) holds above its signal line and the zero mark on the 4-hour chart, suggesting strengthening upside momentum. Meanwhile, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 68 shows that the buyers are adding pressure to the market. 

However, if the recovery fails, the bears would likely retest the key support level at the 50-day EMA at $248, followed by the support trendline at $202.