Zano (ZANO/USDT) is showing renewed strength on the weekly chart, climbing over 21 % in the past week to trade near $16.50, its highest level since June. After months of sideways consolidation, the privacy-focused blockchain project appears to be on the verge of a significant breakout, one that could redefine its mid-term market structure heading into 2026.
Technical Setup: Ascending Triangle Points to Breakout Potential
The chart shows Zano maintaining a well-defined ascending triangle pattern, marked by a series of higher lows converging toward a long-term resistance at $17.77. This setup, often associated with accumulation before continuation, reflects growing bullish pressure.
A decisive weekly close above $17.80 could confirm this pattern, signalling the start of a new up-trend phase with immediate targets around $22.50 and potentially $24.80, the next key fib-based resistance zones.
If Zano fails to hold above $16, however, short-term traders should watch for a potential retest of the $12.50–$13 support zone, which has served as a strong accumulation range since August. The rising white trendline in the chart underscores the strength of that level as structural support.
Momentum indicators are aligning with the bullish structure. The RSI stands at 63.5, trending upward but still comfortably below overbought territory, suggesting continued upside potential without an immediate exhaustion risk.
Meanwhile, the On-Balance Volume (OBV) indicator continues to climb steadily, a sign of sustained buying interest even through consolidation phases. Historically, such OBV divergences in projects like Zano have preceded major impulsive moves.
If bullish momentum persists and volume expands above the $17.80 resistance, Zano could enter a new phase of price discovery. A confirmed breakout would mark the first weekly close above resistance since April 2025, flipping the zone into strong support.
Until then, traders will watch for confirmation candles and sustained volume growth. The $13–$14 range remains the critical line in the sand for bulls to defend.
What makes Zano Different?
Zano is a layer-1 blockchain built for confidential assets. Unlike traditional privacy coins that only obscure wallet addresses or amounts, Zano’s protocol allows users to issue tokens and build dApps with privacy built in at the base layer.
The co-founder of Zano, Andrey Sabelnikov was the lead developer of CryptoNote , the same foundation protocol behind Monero and other privacy coins.
Technically, Zano leverages ring signatures, stealth addresses and Bulletproofs+ to hide senders, receivers and values. It also integrates a mechanism called “ Zarcanum ” that keeps staking amounts private, something even most privacy networks do not achieve.
Beyond simple transfers, users can interact via aliases, escrow contracts and a decentralized marketplace API, creating the foundation for an ecosystem where privacy is native, not optional.
Privacy Coins Reclaim the Spotlight as Traders Rotate Toward Anonymity
After a year dominated by ETF inflows , institutional arbitrage, and the steady financialization of crypto markets , the privacy-coin sector is quietly staging a comeback. Tokens like Zano, Monero, and Zcash are drawing renewed attention as traders and developers look for corners of the market still true to crypto’s original principles, self-custody, sovereignty, and discretion.
The rotation isn’t only speculative. On-chain data shows rising transaction counts across shielded networks and a rebound in liquidity within decentralised exchanges that support privacy-enabled swaps.
These trends suggest that the privacy narrative, long overshadowed by regulatory scrutiny and delistings, is evolving from niche activism into a legitimate market segment. As mainstream crypto converges with traditional finance, investors appear increasingly willing to treat anonymity as a feature, not a flaw.
This shift reflects more than nostalgia for crypto’s cypherpunk roots. It’s also a practical response to mounting compliance requirements and surveillance infrastructure surrounding centralised platforms. For many, holding or transacting in privacy assets represents a hedge against over-regulation, a way to preserve optionality in an industry that once promised freedom by design. With network usage ticking higher and liquidity returning to formerly quiet markets, privacy coins are beginning to look less like relics of an earlier era and more like essential infrastructure for the next phase of decentralized finance.
