# Cardano Founder Bets on Midnight to Outperform Zcash in Privacy Race Hoskinson highlights Midnight's regulatory compliance and tech stack as key advantages over Zcash. - **Source:** [DailyCoin](https://brifing.si/source/3e9b0f85-cb2f-40ee-ba61-db9410cf0937) - **Published:** 2026-09-29 - **Topic:** [Finance](https://brifing.si/c/finance) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/15cd433c-e977-42eb-b79f-8f8e81cc125d ## Privacy coins lead crypto gains Privacy-focused cryptocurrencies have emerged as this year's top-performing digital assets, with Zcash (ZEC) posting a staggering 1,909% yearly gain. The sector's growth reflects increasing demand for transactional privacy solutions. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson predicts his Midnight (NIGHT) project will eventually surpass Zcash's current $25 billion market cap. Weiss Crypto ratings agency recently endorsed NIGHT as a top contender for the next two years, triggering a 14% price surge. ## Midnight's regulatory edge Unlike Zcash's all-or-nothing privacy approach, Midnight offers selective disclosure capabilities - allowing users to balance privacy with compliance requirements. This feature addresses a critical pain point for institutional adoption, as financial regulations often require transaction visibility. Midnight's design enables verifiable yet confidential data handling through its Compact language, making it more palatable to corporate users who must meet international standards. ## Technical differentiators Midnight combines multiple privacy technologies including Zero Knowledge proofs (ZK), Trusted Execution Environments (TEE), and Multi-Party Computation (MPC). The side-chain also features programmable Private Agents and a cross-chain DeFi kernel abstraction layer. These innovations aim to provide more flexible privacy solutions than Zcash's singular zk-SNARKs approach while maintaining Cardano's 24/7 uptime and leveraging Leios consensus for scalability. ## Market positioning While Zcash currently ranks among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap, Hoskinson believes Midnight's hybrid public-private architecture gives it long-term advantages. The project targets both individual users seeking privacy and institutions needing regulatory compliance. This dual approach could help Midnight capture market share from Zcash, especially as governments increase scrutiny on anonymous transactions. ## Institutional adoption potential Midnight's selective privacy model directly addresses corporate concerns about using privacy coins. Financial institutions and digital asset firms often face regulatory requirements to disclose certain transaction details. Midnight allows them to maintain privacy where possible while providing necessary transparency to authorities - a compromise Zcash's binary privacy model cannot offer. ## Performance metrics Following Weiss Crypto's endorsement, NIGHT token price surged 14% to break through the $0.03 support level. The positive market reaction suggests investor confidence in Midnight's potential to compete with Zcash. Privacy coins have outperformed other altcoin sectors this year, including the Real-World Asset (RWA) market, indicating strong sector momentum. ## Development roadmap Hoskinson has set 2027 as a target milestone for Midnight to surpass Zcash. The project will need to deliver on its promised technical capabilities while navigating evolving regulatory landscapes. Success will depend on adoption by both privacy-focused individuals and compliance-conscious institutions - two markets that have traditionally been difficult to serve simultaneously. ## Industry implications The competition between Midnight and Zcash represents a broader shift in privacy technology development - from absolute anonymity to configurable solutions. As regulations tighten globally, crypto projects must balance user privacy with legal compliance. Midnight's approach could set a new standard for how blockchain projects address this challenge, potentially reshaping the privacy coin market. ## Sources covering this story - https://dailycoin.com/midnight-vs-zcash-zec-why-cardano-founder-backs-night/ — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._