The performance of privacy coins in recent months has indeed been surprising. Monero (XMR) broke through an 8-year resistance level, recently reaching around $596, with a 24-hour increase of over 18% and a weekly gain of more than 40%. Other privacy coins like Zcash have also gained strength, making the entire sector more active.

Interestingly, some regions have adopted stricter attitudes toward privacy coins, but this has instead sparked a renewed awareness of privacy needs in the market. When external pressure increases, XMR does not weaken but accelerates its rise—this anti-fragile characteristic is worth noting.

From a fundamental perspective, the regulatory environment is changing, and on-chain tracking technology is advancing. This has led market participants to reconsider the value of privacy protection. In the past, some viewed privacy as an optional add-on, but more and more people are realizing that true privacy might be a hard requirement.

Monero’s biggest advantage lies in its default privacy-by-design. Technologies like ring signatures, stealth addresses, and confidential transactions stack together, hiding sender, receiver, and transfer amount—all automatically, without users needing to manually toggle any switches. In contrast, some coins offering "optional privacy" may seem flexible, but in practical application, their integrity is somewhat lacking.

Many industry insiders are envisioning a storyline for 2026—privacy could become one of the main narratives in the market, with XMR just the starting point of this wave. Institutions are quietly positioning, retail investors are re-evaluating, and regulatory pressure has ironically become a catalyst. When these three forces converge, opportunities often emerge. Early participants and latecomers’ profit expectations are naturally different.

Of course, the privacy coin sector also comes with uncertainties. Regulatory risks always exist, and this is a serious consideration for participants.