Grayscale filed its fifth amendment with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, advancing its bid to convert the Grayscale Zcash Trust into what would become the first spot ETF tied to a privacy-focused cryptocurrency.
The filing, submitted as an S-3/A amendment on August 21, renames the trust “The Zcash ETF” and sets an annual sponsor fee of 2.5 percent. The fund would list on NYSE Arca under the ticker ZCH, with Bank of New York Mellon serving as transfer agent and Coinbase Custody Trust Company as custodian and prime broker, according to the prospectus.
Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst James Seyffart said the amendment signals Grayscale is moving closer to a final listing. The filing also references a potential in-kind contribution of approximately 200,000 ZEC to the trust, though the transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions with no guaranteed completion date.
ZEC Surges Past $790 on Regulatory Momentum
Zcash native token ZEC has climbed roughly 22 percent over the past 24 hours to trade near $795, according to CoinMarketCap data. The surge extends a months-long rally that began after the SEC closed its investigation into the Zcash Foundation in January 2026, removing what many considered the biggest regulatory barrier to institutional adoption of privacy coins.
The proposed ETF would track the CoinDesk Zcash Price Index and hold actual ZEC tokens in custody, giving investors regulated exposure to the privacy coin without managing wallets or private keys. Grayscale existing Zcash Trust has traded over the counter under the ticker ZCSH since 2017 and held roughly $137 million in assets at the time of the original S-3 filing in May.
Path to Approval Accelerates Under New SEC Rules
The SEC adopted compressed listing standards for crypto exchange-traded products in late 2025, reducing the typical review timeline from 240 days to roughly 75 days. Under those standards, the Zcash ETF could receive approval as early as the third quarter of 2026, with trading potentially beginning by the fourth quarter if no complications arise.
Privacy coins have faced years of regulatory headwinds, with several major exchanges delisting ZEC and Monero over concerns about transaction traceability. The Grayscale filing represents a notable shift, suggesting regulators are increasingly comfortable with privacy-focused assets operating within compliant market structures after the GENIUS Act established clear stablecoin frameworks earlier this year.
The broader crypto market is riding institutional momentum. Bitcoin traded near $77,100 on Saturday after gaining 22 percent for the week, its strongest weekly performance since 2023, according to CNBC. Spot Bitcoin ETFs drew over $600 million on Wednesday alone, while Ether funds recorded their largest single-day inflow since October, data from Cointelegraph showed.
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