Monero surged to a fresh all-time high above the $590 mark just as Zcash’s momentum faded. Monero (XMR) has ripped higher to a new record, trading above $567 on Sunday, 11 January 2026, and pushing towards roughly $592.This is its highest level recorded. At the time of writing, it is trading at around $569.
Monero’s powerful run that has seen XMR jump more than 20% in 24 hours and nearly 40% over the past week, shows a powerful rotation inside the privacy-coin niche.
Is the Monero breakout a part of the broader privacy-coin comeback? They have been quietly outperforming much of the market since Q4 2025. In fact, Monero and Zcash were among 2025’s best performers, even before XMR’s current push to new highs.
$XMR Is better than $BTC and thats why its being muted.
Under the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR), a total ban on privacy coins like $XMR is being phased in. By July 2027, all exchanges and banks in the EU are legally forbidden from holding or trading Monero. pic.twitter.com/QxS9uQ5Udb
— Gublo (@Gubloinvestor) January 9, 2026
In fact, legendary trader Peter Brandt said that Monero may be approaching a breakout point. He compared Monero’s multi-year price structure with silver’s decades-long setup before its recent historic surge.
CIO at Merkle Tree Capital, Ryan McMillin suggested that privacy was one of the few crypto sectors that “held up relatively well” through 2025’s volatility.
Furthermore, analysts say that the latest leg higher extends a multi-week uptrend that began in late 2024, with Monero steadily grinding higher even as many large0cap coins have chopped sideways. On the weekly chart, XMR has already taken out its 2018 cycle peak. Is this uncovering a fresh price discovery phase in one of crypto;s longest-running privacy networks?
Holy shit! We have @PeterLBrandt onboard. Monero is ridiculously underpriced and under appreciated. https://t.co/2Ejl7lsEAI
— edwinrosero (@alieniswonder) January 12, 2026
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Monero Prints New Highs, Zcash (ZEC) Flashes Different Picture
Dubai just drew a hard line on crypto privacy. On January 12, the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) banned privacy tokens and rewrote its crypto approval process. Privacy-focused coins like Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC) have surged in response to the news, up +14% and +2% over the past 24 hours, respectively.
However, recent intraday analysis describes ZEC trading as “a corrective downward wave” with price stuck below its 50-day moving average. Hence, the outlook for ZEC has turned bearish. Analysts are eyeing a potential drop back towards key support around $370.85 if the $450 resistance zone continues to cap the upside.
https://twitter.com/Tryrexcrypto/status/2010756853463183859
Notably, recent turmoil around Zcash’s development pipeline has become a major narrative catalyst steering capital towards Monero.
According to reports, the entire Electric Coin Company (ECC) team, which had been central to Zcash’s technical roadmap, resigned amid disputes regarding working conditions, governance, and allocation of project funds. The governance shock coincided with ZEC sliding more than 20% towards the mid-$300s. But Monero ripped higher. XMR now looks like the more stable privacy play.
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