Privacy coins are back, but ZCash and Monero use different models. Solana and Virtuals Protocol add the AI angle, while MemeToro brings a crypto presale and open-source launch framework.
For anyone comparing the best altcoin to buy in 2026, these projects carry different liquidity and development risks. Their strengths depend on whether adoption grows beyond short-term narratives and speculative market demand.
Best Altcoin to Buy: ZCash and Monero Battle Over Privacy ZCash has gained an institutional edge after the launch of a spot Zcash ETF on NYSE Arca under ticker ZCSH. The fund recorded $14.8 million in initial trading volume.
ZEC uses zk-SNARKs with selective disclosure. Users can keep activity private while sharing viewing keys for audits.
Monero takes a stricter approach. XMR hides senders, receivers, and transaction amounts by default, creating stronger privacy but more exchange compliance difficulty.
For the best altcoin to buy debate, the split is clear:
ZCash offers privacy with optional disclosure. Monero makes privacy mandatory across transactions. Regulation and exchange access remain major factors for both. ZCash currently has the stronger institutional narrative, while Monero keeps the more privacy-first design.
Solana and Virtuals Add AI Growth Solana remains a major network for decentralized trading, memecoin issuance, and AI-linked applications. SOL is around $146.50, with September forecasts near $155 to $170 and bullish year-end cases above $200.
Virtuals Protocol is more directly tied to autonomous AI agents. Its framework lets agents raise capital, trade, and distribute protocol earnings to human owners, and it has expanded onto Solana.
The Virtuals agent economy is estimated near $470 million, linking AI automation with fast execution.
For investors searching for the best altcoin to buy, Solana offers broader infrastructure and liquidity, while Virtuals gives more focused exposure to the AI-agent theme. Both still carry crypto volatility and execution risk.
MemeToro Adds an Open-Source Crypto Presale Angle MemeToro is the earliest-stage project here. Its crypto presale is in Stage 7 with more than $121,171.48 raised, while 1 $MT costs $0.00430.
Its AI agent scans signals, builds memecoin proposals, and uses deterministic checks. The latest “First fairlaunch draft” adds its first real Solidity contract code.
FairLaunchEscrow.sol holds contributions under fixed rules with no owner, admin role, or upgrade path. Contributor and liquidity allocations must cover the full token supply, supporting the zero-insider model.
However, the launch executor, manifest connection, BNB Chain testnet deployment, ERC-8004 identity, and independent security review remain unfinished.
That makes MemeToro different from publicly traded ZEC, XMR, SOL, and Virtuals. Anyone choosing the best altcoin to buy should treat a crypto presale as a higher-risk development-stage asset rather than an equal comparison.
FAQs Which privacy coin looks more institution-friendly? ZCash currently has the stronger compliance angle because selective disclosure can support audits and regulated financial products. Monero protects privacy more strictly, but mandatory concealment creates added exchange and compliance pressure.
Is Monero more private than ZCash? Monero makes transaction privacy mandatory for senders, receivers, and amounts. ZCash supports shielded activity but also allows viewing keys, creating a different balance between privacy and disclosure.
Is MemeToro already a live altcoin? No. MemeToro remains a crypto presale. Its open-source fair-launch framework is public, but testnet deployment, executor completion, manifest integration, and independent security review still remain ahead today.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
Disclosure. PANews may publish sponsored content, partner content, advertisements, affiliate links, event promotions, and market commentary involving Web3 projects, service providers, or financial products. PANews personnel, contributors, or affiliates may hold digital assets or other interests related to covered topics. See our Terms of Service.
Monero (XMR) trading has grown more fragmented after successive exchange delistings, and that fragmentation now shows up in liquidity and pricing. Traders who want XMR cannot actually treat every single swap path as interchangeable.
They have to compare routes because the same pair, quoted at the same moment, can return meaningfully different amounts of coin.
Centralized access has narrowed.
Kraken ended XMR trading and deposits for European Economic Area clients in October 2024.
OKX told EEA users earlier that year that Monero would no longer be supported on those accounts.
Other large venues had already stepped back.
The protocol kept running.
What changed was the set of places where a holder could convert another asset into XMR, or convert XMR back out, without assembling the trade by hand.
With fewer deep order books on major platforms, remaining liquidity is spread across swap providers that do not share a single pool.
A Bitcoin-to-XMR path can tap different inventory than a USDT-to-XMR path.
Two services quoting the same pair at the same time can still deliver different XMR amounts because their routes, depth, and network costs are not identical.
Those gaps appear only when the quoted payouts are lined up under matching conditions: same pair, same send size, same rate type, same observation time.
Live comparison data makes the spread concrete.
Monivo’s Crypto Swap Rate Index records executable quotes from connected providers under those matched conditions.
A 30-day snapshot taken on August 31, 2026 at 06:50 UTC contained more than 1,000 quotes from eight providers across 17 pairs and 171 comparable sets.
The median gap between the best and worst quote in a matched set was 2.55 percent; the mean was 2.77 percent.
That number is not a posted fee. It is the percentage difference in the amount of asset the providers said they would deliver.
Among frequently sampled pairs, XMR-to-BTC showed the widest median spread at 3.65 percent, with an observed high of 4.90 percent. USDT-to-XMR sat near 3.07 percent.
More liquid pairs such as BTC-to-USDT were tighter, around 2.41 percent.
Later index updates continue to show Monero legs among the most dispersed, which is consistent with a market that no longer has a single dominant spot book.
A wider spread does not automatically mean a provider is overcharging.
Inventory, routing, network fees, and short-term market conditions can produce different but still fillable quotes.
An unavailable provider is not scored as expensive. Spreads are calculated only when at least two services return a usable answer.
Obvious malformed quotes are dropped; merely weak ones stay in the sample.
The figures also cover only the providers in the comparison engine.
They are snapshots and can change before a swap settles.Practical comparison starts with the asset already in the wallet.
A Bitcoin holder can price BTC-to-XMR directly.
A stablecoin holder may do better with USDT-to-XMR.
Inserting an extra conversion usually adds another spread and another network fee. Send amounts should stay constant across quotes.
Fixed-rate and floating-rate offers should not be mixed.
The figure that matters is the XMR that will arrive, not a headline percentage.
Instant swap aggregators can request several quotes at once, but they only see the liquidity they are connected to. A competitive route today can look different tomorrow if depth or network conditions shift. After delistings thinned centralized access, checking live payouts across routes is no longer optional for anyone moving size in Monero.
Cover image via depositphotos.com Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
In terms of market capitalization, Monero has surpassed Chainlink, which pushed XMR into the top 10 biggest cryptocurrencies as the two assets move in radically different ways. Based on the market data provided, Monero is estimated to be worth $10.07 billion, just above Chainlink's $9.96 billion capitalization.
Link doesn't fall behindChainlink has done well on its own. LINK has increased by nearly 18% in the last seven days and by about 8.7% in the last twenty-four hours. After a swift recovery from the $8–$9 range in August, its daily chart displays a breakout above $13. Monero's journey has been distinct.
XMR/USDT Chart by TradingViewAlthough XMR has dropped by about 1.4% over the last week, it was able to maintain enough market capitalization to surpass LINK due to its much greater rally over the previous month. XMR increased from about $350 in early August to about $570 recently. Despite the most recent consolidation, Monero is still in a strong uptrend technically. XMR is trading well above its 20-day moving average, which is close to $470, and its longer averages, which are between $381 and $414, at roughly $536.
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Both assets stay overboughtAlthough the reading suggests a higher risk of a short-term correction, an RSI around 70 also demonstrates that momentum is still high. In the short term, Chainlink is even more strained.
LINK's 20-day moving average is still around $11.15, but its most recent breakout moved it toward $13.50. Since the RSI has risen above 75, the asset is clearly in overbought territory. The next obvious resistance area is now the $13.50–$14 range.
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Monero is therefore far from guaranteed a spot in the top 10. Currently, the difference between XMR and LINK is only about $110 million, or slightly more than 1% of their respective valuations. Given that LINK has significantly outperformed XMR over the last week, even a slight continuation of the current divergence could cause their positions to change.
However, Monero is currently in the lead. The privacy-focused cryptocurrency has returned to the market's highest-capitalization group thanks to its 2025 rally, but LINK is close enough to make the ranking a contest rather than a clear takeover.
Monero has edged past Chainlink in market capitalization, securing a position among the ten largest cryptocurrencies. Latest figures show Monero’s market cap at $10.07 billion, just ahead of Chainlink’s $9.96 billion, as both assets have charted divergent paths in recent weeks.
Price movements and breakout levelsChainlink has seen notable gains. LINK climbed nearly 18% over the last week and posted an 8.7% increase in the last 24 hours. The token, widely used for decentralized oracle networks, rebounded sharply from the $8–$9 band in August and recently broke above $13 on the daily chart.
Monero’s price action has been markedly different. Although XMR dropped 1.4% in the last week, its capitalization leapt last month after a steep rally. XMR rose from approximately $350 in early August to a recent peak near $570. This surge allowed Monero to surpass Chainlink in overall valuation despite its recent minor losses.
On a technical level, XMR remains in a strong uptrend. The coin trades well above its 20-day moving average, currently close to $470, while its longer-term averages range between $381 and $414. At present, XMR holds near $536, indicating persistent technical momentum.
AssetLatest Price1 Week ChangeMarket Cap20-day MAMonero (XMR)$536-1.4%$10.07 billion$470Chainlink (LINK)$13.50+18%$9.96 billion$11.15Technical momentum and risk indicatorsA relative strength index (RSI) near 70 for XMR signals continued momentum but also suggests a higher risk of a near-term pullback. For Chainlink, the short-term picture is even more stretched, as LINK’s RSI climbed above 75, placing it in technically “overbought” territory. The 20-day moving average for LINK remains about $11.15, but its latest rally carried it up to the $13.50 mark and toward upcoming resistance in the $13.50–$14 zone.
Despite these differences, Monero’s position in the top 10 is anything but certain. The gap between XMR and LINK’s capitalizations sits at just over $110 million, approximately 1% of their respective values. With LINK’s stronger performance over the past week, even a small extension of current trends could see the two switch places again.
Despite a recent dip, Monero’s rally over the past month elevated its market cap above Chainlink, but the narrow spread means their rankings could quickly reverse if Chainlink continues to outperform in the days ahead.
Both of these cryptocurrencies have attracted close analyst attention for their distinct market roles. Monero is known for providing privacy-focused transactions, while Chainlink operates as a decentralized oracle network connecting smart contracts with external data.
Mini dictionary: Decentralized oracle network – A system that allows blockchain-based smart contracts to securely interact with external real-world data sources, APIs, and payment systems, ensuring trustless connectivity and automation in decentralized applications.
Investors and traders continue to watch the shifting market dynamics closely as both Monero and Chainlink contend for a place among the most valuable cryptocurrencies.
Privacy coins are up 213% since Bitcoin (BTC) peaked last October. Every other crypto sector is down, according to on-chain analytics firm Glassnode.
The median coin in the top 200 is 58% cheaper than it was that day. Bitcoin itself still trades 36% below its own record.
Privacy Coins Are the Only Sector Above the HighGlassnode tracks 10 sectors, scoring each against its price on October 6, 2025, the day Bitcoin topped out at $126,199 on Binance.
Privacy is the only green bar on the chart. DeFi is the best of the losers, down 27%. Gaming is the worst, down 74%.
Privacy Coins Leave the Rest of Crypto Behind in 2026. Source: GlassnodeLast month was kind to almost everything, with all 10 sectors rising.
Still, privacy coins led that leg too with a 90% gain. Therefore, the ranking did not change, with only 9% of the top 200 sitting above their October price, even after that broad bounce.
So the altcoin season never arrived in the shape holders wanted. Money picked one theme and stayed there.
Zcash Is Doing Almost All the WorkPrivacy coins were worth $7.1 billion a year ago. Glassnode now values the group at $33.6 billion, just above Tron (TRX), the eighth-largest crypto. Zcash (ZEC) supplies most of that. It trades near $1,180 and ranks ninth by market value at $19.9 billion.
Zcash (ZEC) Price Performance. Source: BeInCryptoNotably, while the ZEC price is up 687% since Bitcoin’s high, the privacy sector is up 213%.
Only four of the 25 largest coins beat their October price. Two are privacy names, ZEC and Monero (XMR), which has roughly doubled.
That notwithstanding, the run was not smooth, with Zcash having to patch a critical bug in its shielded pool in June. It then sealed that pool with the Ironwood network upgrade in July.
In August, BeInCrypto asked whether ZEC could reach $1,000 this cycle, when it was trading near $675. It cleared that level days later, and Grayscale’s Zcash ETF assets have reached $463 million.
The Bottom of the Sector Is ThinGlassnode says all eight privacy coins with a year of history have gained. Three of them barely have. Decred (DCR) showed a 2% gain on that reading. Two others managed 3% and 6%.
Privacy Coins Performance. Source: GlassnodeCoinGecko now puts Decred down 2.9% over 12 months. The claim’s weakest leg has already flipped. Zcash and Monero together hold about 90% of the sector’s value.
A stall in Zcash price action would wipe out the one green bar on Glassnode’s chart.
Crypto investors are rotating to privacy tokens, making them among the best gainers in the industry. Dash (CRYPTO: DASH) token jumped to $73.73, its highest level since January 20.
Monero (CRYPTO: XMR) rosse to $560 this week, its highest point since January and 85% above the year-to-date low. Zcash (CRYPTO: ZEC), which has become one of the most active privacy token, crossed the $1,000 level for the first time ever. It has soared by 3,460% from its 2025 low, bringing its market capitalization to over $17.5 billion.
According to CoinGecko, all privacy tokens have a market capitalization of over $28 billion. Some of the other top gainers recently are Decred, Nockchain, Firo, YCash, and MinoTari. Most of these tokens have done better than other coins like Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ripple (CRYPTO: XRP) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH).
Privacy coins use different technologies to ensure that transactions remain hidden. This is unlike what other coins like Bitcoin, ETH, and USDC do since their transactions are available on a public ledger. Monero conceals sender, receiver, and amount by default using ring signatures and stealth addresses.
Zcash, on the other hand, gives one the option of using shielded transfers or public ledger. The amount of shielded supply has jumped to 4.85 million, its highest level since May this year. It has been in a slow uptrend after bottoming at 4.3 million in July.
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A good example of the rising demand for privacy tokens is the Grayscale Zcash ETF (NYSE:ZCSH), which has accumulated over $463 million in assets under management (AUM).
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These privacy tokens have also rallied as investors have embraced a risk-on sentiment, with the Crypto Fear and Greed Index jumping to the greed zone of 75. In most cases, Bitcoin and most altcoins do well whenever there is a sense of greed in the market.
A key risk that may affect these coins is that odds that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates continued rising. These odds jumped after the US published strong jobs data on Friday, with the economy adding over 162k jobs last month.
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Most coverage of Monero focuses on getting into it. The reverse direction gets less attention and is arguably more practical, because at some point most holders want to convert privacy assets back into something more liquid.
Moving XMR back into Bitcoin is straightforward, but the options have narrowed and the trade-offs are worth understanding.
Why the reverse trade is harder than it should be Getting Bitcoin is easy. Nearly every venue lists it. Getting rid of Monero is where people run into friction, because the same delisting wave that removed XMR from major exchanges also removed the obvious exit route.
More than seventy exchanges have delisted Monero since 2024, and European regulation is expected to restrict privacy assets at regulated venues by 2027. A holder who acquired XMR two years ago through a centralised exchange may find that the exchange no longer supports trading out of it.
This has made non-custodial swaps the practical default for the reverse direction rather than a niche alternative.
How to exchange Monero for Bitcoin The mechanics mirror the forward trade. You exchange Monero to Bitcoin by selecting the pair, providing a Bitcoin destination address, and sending your XMR to the deposit address generated for that swap. Settlement typically takes under ten minutes once the Monero transaction confirms.
Four details worth getting right:
Rate type. Floating settles at the market rate when your coins arrive. Fixed locks the rate upfront for a small premium. Monero can be volatile, so on a large trade the fixed rate is usually the sensible choice. Destination accuracy. Your Bitcoin address must be correct. Blockchain transactions cannot be reversed. Refund address. Always set one. If the swap cannot be completed at the quoted terms, your Monero is returned there rather than leaving you to open a support ticket. One exception is worth knowing about: a deposit that the licensed liquidity partner’s automated screening flags can be held pending review, and that is a manual process rather than an automatic return. Confirmation time. Monero requires around ten network confirmations, which takes roughly twenty minutes. Factor that into your timing rather than assuming the swap has stalled. A note on what changes when you convert back Worth understanding clearly: converting Monero into Bitcoin moves value from a private ledger to a public one. The Bitcoin you receive lands at an address on a transparent chain, and its subsequent movements are publicly visible like any other Bitcoin.
The Monero side of the transaction remains private, and the swap does not publish a link between your XMR and the Bitcoin you receive. But the Bitcoin itself behaves like Bitcoin from that point forward. People sometimes assume that passing through Monero permanently anonymises the output, and that is not an accurate way to think about it.
Rates, fees and liquidity XMR to BTC is one of the more liquid privacy-coin pairs, so spreads are usually reasonable. Two costs apply: the service fee, quoted upfront, and network fees on both chains. Monero network fees are typically low. Bitcoin fees depend on congestion and can matter on smaller trades.
Because liquidity for Monero has thinned at custodial venues, check on larger trades that the quoted output amount is the amount that actually lands, and that no further deduction appears at settlement.
Rotating in both directions Many holders do not treat this as a one-way decision. A common pattern is to hold a working balance in Bitcoin for liquidity and rotate a portion into Monero when they want that portion to stop being publicly readable, then convert back when they need to transact at scale.
Both directions run through the same mechanism. Services such as GhostSwap support the full round trip, and moving in the other direction to swap Bitcoin to Monero follows an identical process.
Summary Converting Monero back into Bitcoin takes minutes through a non-custodial swap and does not require an account. Set a refund address, verify the destination, allow for Monero’s confirmation time, and use a fixed rate if the amount is large enough that a price move during settlement would matter. The exit route from Monero has narrowed at custodial venues, but it has not closed.
Finding somewhere to trade Monero is not as straightforward as it once was.
Several exchanges have reduced or removed XMR support in recent years. Kraken stopped XMR trading and deposits for clients in the European Economic Area in October 2024, while OKX also notified EEA users in April 2024 that XMR would no longer be supported on those accounts.
Monero itself did not disappear from the market. What changed was where some users could access it. With XMR available through a smaller and less uniform mix of venues, the price offered for the same swap can vary depending on which route and provider handles it.
For traders looking to swap Monero, comparing the actual quote has become especially useful.
Why XMR liquidity can look different across providers Monivo, a non-custodial crypto swap aggregator, compares live XMR quotes from the providers connected to its platform. Its Monero exchange hub covers routes such as BTC to XMR, USDT to XMR, XMR to BTC, and other supported pairs.
Each provider can rely on different liquidity sources and routes. The available depth can also change depending on the pair and the amount being exchanged.
A BTC-to-XMR swap, for example, does not have to follow the same liquidity route as a USDT-to-XMR swap. Even providers quoting the same pair at the same moment can return different XMR amounts, so the difference only becomes clear once their quoted payouts are compared.
Exchange availability adds another variable. With XMR available through a smaller, less uniform set of major centralized venues, accessible liquidity can vary more meaningfully by provider, route, and transaction size. Monivo includes multiple XMR legs in its scheduled Rate Index panel because quote dispersion on those routes can be wider than on deep major-asset pairs.
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What live Monero swap rates show The differences can be seen in Monivo’s Crypto Swap Rate Index, which records live provider responses under matching conditions.
In the 30-day Rate Index snapshot retrieved on August 31, 2026, at 06:50 UTC, the index contained over 1,000 provider quotes from eight providers across 17 trading pairs and 171 comparable quote sets.
Across the sample, the median best-to-worst spread was 2.55%, with a mean of 2.77%. The 2.55% figure is not a trading fee. It is the median percentage difference between the highest and lowest provider quotes within matched comparable sets.
Among the ten pairs with the most comparable sets, XMR to BTC recorded the largest median spread at 3.65%, with a widest observed gap of 4.90%. USDT to XMR followed at 3.07%, while BTC to USDT reached 2.41%. BTC to ETH recorded 1.96%, and ETH to BTC 1.71%.
The comparison is useful because the difference is measured in the amount providers quote back, not simply in the fee they advertise. A provider can look competitive on fees while returning less XMR once the full route is priced.
Monivo only calculates these spreads when the quotes belong to the same comparable set. Providers are asked for the same pair, amount, and rate type at the same observation moment. An unavailable provider is not counted as expensive, and at least two providers must return a usable quote before a spread can be calculated.
A wider spread does not necessarily mean one provider is overcharging. Liquidity depth, network costs, route availability, and market conditions can legitimately lead to different payouts. Clearly malformed upstream quotes, such as obvious unit or decimal errors far outside the rest of their comparison set, are excluded, while poor but plausible quotes remain in the sample.
However, it is important to note that the figures are snapshots of quotes from Monivo’s connected providers. They do not represent every XMR venue, and quoted amounts may expire or change before a swap is executed.
How traders can compare XMR routes The first step is choosing the route that matches the assets already available in the wallet.
Someone holding Bitcoin can compare BTC-to-XMR quotes directly. A trader holding stablecoins may find USDT-to-XMR more practical. Converting through an unnecessary intermediate asset can add another trade, another spread, and potentially another network cost.
The amount also needs to stay consistent when traders compare XMR rates. A provider that gives the strongest quote for a small swap may return a different relative price for a larger one.
Fixed and floating rates should also be kept separate. A fixed quote locks its terms for a specified period, while a floating quote can move with the market before the transaction is completed.
For the user, the useful number is the quoted XMR output. Comparing that amount across providers gives a clearer view than picking an XMR exchange based only on a headline rate or fee.
Instant-swap aggregators can make that comparison easier by requesting quotes from several providers for the same transaction. The available routes still depend on the providers connected to the service, their liquidity, and whether they support the requested pair.
Fresh quotes matter as well. A route that looks competitive for BTC to XMR today may not offer the same relative value tomorrow, especially when liquidity or network conditions change.
Disclosure: This is sponsored content. It does not represent Crypto Briefing's editorial views. For more information, see our Editorial Policy.
Privacy coins are gaining a place in regulated investment markets even as direct access to their underlying assets becomes harder. Grayscale’s Zcash ETF now trades on NYSE Arca, while major centralized exchanges have reduced support for Monero and other privacy-focused cryptocurrencies. THORChain’s latest upgrade shows how decentralized infrastructure could help close that access gap.
Summary
Grayscale’s ZCSH gives US brokerage investors direct spot exposure to Zcash through NYSE Arca. Binance, OKX and Kraken have reduced Monero access amid growing regulatory pressure. THORChain v3.20 prepares the protocol for native Monero and Zcash swaps without wrapped tokens. THORChain later delayed the privacy-coin rollout while contributors focused on network stability. EU anti-money-laundering rules will restrict support for anonymity-enhancing coins from July 2027. Privacy is reaching Wall Street as exchange access shrinks Privacy in crypto is moving in two directions at once.
On one side, it is entering the financial mainstream. Grayscale’s Zcash ETF, ZCSH, began trading on NYSE Arca on Aug. 25. Grayscale described it as the first exchange-traded product to offer spot exposure to Zcash (ZEC).
The fund gives US investors a way to gain ZEC exposure through a regular brokerage account. They do not need to open a crypto exchange account, manage private keys, or hold the asset in a personal wallet.
On the other hand, directly buying, selling, and moving privacy coins has become more difficult in several markets. Centralized exchanges have removed assets or restricted access as regulators apply tighter anti-money-laundering standards.
The contradiction is hard to miss. Wall Street can now package exposure to a privacy-focused asset inside a regulated fund, while parts of the crypto market are becoming less willing or less able to support the underlying coins.
THORChain’s v3.20 upgrade matters within that divide. The release laid technical groundwork for native Monero (XMR) and Zcash swaps alongside assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and stablecoins.
However, THORChain said after the upgrade that the Monero and Zcash rollout had been delayed while contributors focused on network stability. The protocol’s interface for supported cross-chain trades is available through its native swap platform, with XMR and ZEC access dependent on their final activation.
Monero delistings show the cost of centralized access Monero provides the clearest example of how a permissionless cryptocurrency can remain operational while becoming harder to reach.
Binance removed XMR in February 2024, while OKX also ended support for Monero trading pairs. Kraken later stopped XMR trading and deposits for customers in the European Economic Area, citing regulatory changes.
Those decisions did not shut down Monero. The blockchain continued processing transactions, and users could still send XMR between compatible wallets. What changed was access to the services that many people use to enter or leave the market.
Monero is private by default. Its design conceals the sender, receiver, and transaction amount. Supporters see those protections as the digital equivalent of the privacy available when paying with physical cash.
The same design creates problems for centralized exchanges responsible for customer checks, transaction monitoring, and anti-money-laundering controls. Exchanges may struggle to collect the information expected by regulators when transaction details are hidden at the protocol level.
Europe is making that conflict more direct. The European Union’s Anti-Money Laundering Regulation addresses crypto accounts that allow transactions to be anonymized or made harder to trace, including through “anonymity-enhancing coins.”
The regulation is scheduled to apply from July 2027. Its provisions will prevent crypto-asset service providers from maintaining anonymous accounts or accounts that allow transaction obfuscation through such assets.
The US has not introduced an identical nationwide prohibition on privacy-coin trading. Still, limited support from large exchanges means American users may face fewer options than holders of more widely listed assets. Grayscale’s ZCSH provides regulated price exposure to Zcash, but owning an ETF share is not the same as holding ZEC or using its privacy features on-chain.
THORChain targets the missing bridge between privacy coins and crypto A blockchain can remain permissionless at the protocol level while becoming difficult to use in practice.
Someone may still receive and send XMR through the Monero network. The larger problem appears when that person wants to move from XMR into Bitcoin, Ethereum, or a stablecoin without using a centralized service that supports both sides of the trade.
Native cross-chain liquidity offers another route. THORChain is designed to exchange assets across their original blockchains instead of requiring users to move wrapped representations onto a separate network.
Under the planned privacy-coin integrations, users would be able to move between native XMR or ZEC and supported crypto assets without first depositing their funds with a centralized exchange. They would not need to create an exchange account or surrender custody for the trade.
THORChain had already tested native Monero swaps before v3.20. As crypto.news reported in June, the protocol said XMR swaps were working from end to end in testing and that Zcash support would follow.
The delay announced after v3.20 shows that technical preparation does not guarantee immediate public availability. Cross-chain systems must manage separate networks, liquidity pools, and security risks, while privacy-focused assets can add further operational and regulatory questions.
THORChain said the delayed rollout would give contributors more time to prepare the Monero and Zcash integrations. Native swaps can reduce reliance on centralized intermediaries, although users must still consider liquidity, network, and implementation risks.
Zcash exposes the market’s privacy contradiction Zcash makes the split between regulated investment access and on-chain privacy even clearer.
Unlike Monero, Zcash allows users to choose between transparent and shielded transactions. According to the project’s documentation, transparent addresses expose transaction information publicly, while shielded addresses are designed to protect financial details.
Grayscale’s ETF does not give investors access to either transaction type. ZCSH holds ZEC to track the asset’s market value, while investors buy and sell fund shares through a securities exchange.
The product therefore brings the economics of a privacy coin into a regulated US investment structure without giving shareholders its underlying privacy functions. Grayscale’s earlier filings also indicated that the fund would use transparent custody rather than shielded addresses.
For investors, that distinction matters. ZCSH offers price exposure and brokerage convenience, not private payments or direct participation in the Zcash network.
The ETF’s arrival still represents a notable change in how traditional finance treats privacy-focused assets. Crypto.news previously reported that Grayscale’s conversion followed an SEC filing process that began in May. The launch placed ZEC beside other crypto assets available through regulated US exchange-traded products.
At the same time, exchange delistings show that regulatory acceptance is not uniform. Authorities and financial firms may permit a transparent investment vehicle tied to a privacy coin while remaining uncomfortable with direct access to its transaction features.
Decentralized access does not remove every trade-off THORChain’s planned XMR and ZEC support sits between those two markets.
Version 3.20 also restored support for Solana, Base, and BNB and introduced Protocol-Owned Liquidity and a Stable Reserve. Yet the privacy-coin integrations are more revealing because they address an access problem created outside the underlying blockchains.
Centralized exchanges offer customer support, fiat payment channels, and account protections that decentralized protocols may not provide. They also remain responsible for meeting the laws of every jurisdiction in which they operate.
Decentralized systems remove some of those intermediaries, but they place more responsibility on users. A person making a native swap must manage a compatible wallet, verify addresses, and understand that transactions may not be reversible. Liquidity and execution prices can also differ from those available on a large exchange.
Regulatory questions will remain even if the protocol itself does not require an account. Users are still responsible for following the laws, reporting rules, and tax requirements that apply in their country.
None of those limits change the central issue. A cryptocurrency is only partly accessible when its network remains online, but the main routes connecting it to the wider market disappear.
Privacy coins are now testing the meaning of permissionless finance. If regulated exchanges decide they cannot support certain assets, access will either continue to shrink or decentralized infrastructure will provide another path. THORChain is preparing to offer that path, although its Monero and Zcash swaps must first move from technical groundwork to a stable public rollout.
One address, unlimited one-time destinationsEvery time someone sends Monero ($XMR), the payment lands at an address the recipient never actually published. The result is that a single published address can collect unlimited payments without any two of them sharing a visible location on the blockchain.
Three keys make the system work. The public address is what a recipient shares. The private view key lets a wallet detect incoming transactions. The private spend key is what authorises funds to move.
This is why wallet syncing takes time: there is no shortcut lookup, only a full scan of every transaction on the network.
Third parties observing the blockchain see only one-time public keys, with no way to connect them to a known wallet or identity.
Sender privacy is also evolvingRecipient privacy through stealth addresses has been part of Monero since launch. Sender privacy has historically relied on ring signatures, a mechanism that hides each real spend among a small group of decoys.
That system is now being replaced.
The @monero project is working to apply this upgrade across the entire native output set, meaning older outputs will also benefit from the expanded anonymity pool.
Polygon (POL) faced significant market pressure as its price declined 7.6% today, trading at $0.0957 after the project’s network applied major security fixes. The selloff comes just days after Polygon patched multiple vulnerabilities through a series of hard forks aimed at improving overall stability.
Polygon’s Price Under Pressure After Security PatchDeveloped as a scaling solution for Ethereum, Polygon has emerged among the leading layer-2 networks in the crypto market. Despite recent security enhancements, the token remains caught in a downward trend, having lost over 27% in the last seven days.
Technical indicators show POL trading below its short-term moving averages, suggesting that bearish sentiment continues to weigh on the market. Analysts observed a price range between $0.0885 and $0.106, with a climb above $0.1005 considered necessary to trigger a broader recovery. If downward trends persist, the risk of further declines remains high as sellers maintain control.
CoinCurrent Price7-Day ChangeKey ResistanceSupport LevelPolygon (POL)$0.0957-27%$0.1005$0.0885Polygon has patched key vulnerabilities, yet selling pressure keeps the token under $0.10, fueling concerns of further short-term weakness.
Monero Advances on Infrastructure ImprovementsMonero (XMR), a privacy-focused cryptocurrency, has shown strong momentum as its price continues to rally through September. The recent infrastructure upgrade has sparked renewed buying activity, pushing the price toward the $520 to $527 resistance zone.
While traders track the rising price, the price momentum index stands at 80.92, a reading that often signals a potential pause or pullback in the near term if demand fades.
If buying continues, Monero could attempt to breach the $527 mark. However, overstretched momentum metrics suggest the rally may soon encounter resistance.
BlockDAG Opens Buyback Program with Enhanced BonusBlockDAG (BDAG), a recently established blockchain project, launched an aggressive buyback offer, activating its first $5 million buyback batch in the coming days. The initiative allows buyers to purchase BDAG at $0.00000007 and apply the “BUYBACK250” code to receive an additional 250% BDAG bonus along with priority access to the buyback program.
Participants who utilize the code increase their allocation and gain earlier entrance into Batch 1, where BDAG holders can later sell their tokens at the project’s announced $0.04 buyback price point.
With limited time before the buyback window opens, the promotion combines a large bonus, a low entry price, and a first-in-line advantage for buyers. BlockDAG describes the current offer as a unique opportunity for those aiming to secure a position in what it calls one of today’s fastest-growing cryptocurrency projects.
BlockDAG is a blockchain network leveraging Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) architecture to enhance scalability and transaction speeds beyond traditional blockchain structures.
Mini dictionary: Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG), a network structure that allows parallel processing of transactions and blocks, increasing throughput on blockchain platforms and enabling more efficient scaling compared to linear blockchains.
This strategic move has captured traders’ attention, with priority access and bonus offerings positioning BDAG as a notable contender in the evolving cryptocurrency landscape.
Privacy-focused cryptos widely outperformed the market in August. Zcash (ZEC) climbed 82%, driven by the launch of Grayscale’s spot ZCSH ETF on NYSE Arca. Monero (XMR), on the other hand, rose 40%, thanks to the arrival of native swaps on THORChain v3.20. And the momentum does not stop there: several more discreet privacy coins are also benefiting, even though regulatory pressure remains strong.
In brief ZEC surged 82% in August, raising its market cap from about 8 to over 14 billion dollars after the launch of Grayscale’s ZCSH fund on NYSE Arca. XMR gained nearly 40% over the month and approached a market cap of 10 billion dollars, notably after the arrival of native XMR swaps on THORChain. Other privacy coins also benefited from the movement, even though regulatory pressure remains a significant obstacle for the sector Zcash, Grayscale’s accelerator boost ZEC’s surge peaked during the last week of August, but the movement had started well before the ETF listing. The token’s return to its 2018 levels had laid the foundations.
Then, on August 25, Grayscale finalized the conversion: ZCSH thus becomes the very first listed product to offer direct exposure to ZEC. The fund is backed by about 304 million dollars worth of ZEC held at Coinbase Custody, for an annual fee of 2.5%.
Grayscale presents ZCSH as a “satellite” position. The fund justifies the conversion by the network’s maturity and its zero-knowledge proofs (cryptographic proofs that validate a transaction without revealing amounts or addresses).
Buying a share of ZCSH rather than holding ZEC offers the benefits of the creation and redemption mechanism typical of ETFs, which reduces the gaps with the fund’s net asset value, whereas the trust was still trading at a 17% discount at the end of June. The effective launch of ZCSH on NYSE Arca remains a world first for spot exposure to a privacy coin.
Monero and THORChain, the native swaps bet Monero followed a different trajectory. XMR started the month more calmly before accelerating towards the end of August. In the last week, the crypto gained nearly 20%, bringing its monthly gain to around 40% and its market cap to nearly 10 billion dollars.
This time, it was not an ETF that served as catalyst. The main new element concerns THORChain, which integrated native XMR swaps in its version 3.20. This development allows users to swap Monero against other assets like bitcoin or ether directly via the protocol’s cross-chain infrastructure.
For Monero, this integration comes in a particular context. Several exchanges have already removed XMR from their offerings, notably due to compliance difficulties linked to the confidential nature of transactions.
Decentralized liquidity solutions therefore take on additional importance. With native swaps, users can move their XMR without necessarily going through a centralized platform or a tokenized version of the asset.
The rollout remains gradual and liquidity still has to prove itself. The XMR surge observed in August therefore does not guarantee that this momentum will continue at the same pace.
Liquidity vs regulation, the sector’s double challenge Between institutional access for Zcash and new decentralized gateways for Monero, the market shows renewed interest in financial tools preserving anonymity.
However, the regulatory environment continues to toughen: about ten jurisdictions already ban trading of privacy coins on regulated exchanges, and the implementation in 2026 of the OECD’s CARF (Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework) will strengthen tax transparency obligations.
For this summer rally to be sustainable, three factors will be decisive: actual flows to the ZCSH ETF, liquidity depth on THORChain, and the projects’ ability to reconcile privacy and compliance. As Zcash’s progress before the Ironwood upgrade already showed, privacy is becoming a promising investment theme again; it remains to be seen if volumes will follow in the long term.
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Fenelon L.
Passionné par le Bitcoin, j'aime explorer les méandres de la blockchain et des cryptos et je partage mes découvertes avec la communauté. Mon rêve est de vivre dans un monde où la vie privée et la liberté financière sont garanties pour tous, et je crois fermement que Bitcoin est l'outil qui peut rendre cela possible.
DISCLAIMER
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author, and should not be taken as investment advice. Do your own research before taking any investment decisions.
Monero [XMR] is showing strong upside momentum. After failing to hold $500 earlier, the altcoin’s bullish pressure strengthened, reclaiming $500 and hiking to a high of $520.
At press time, Monero was trading around $516, marking an 11% surge on the daily charts. Over the same period, the altcoin trading volume surged 206%, reflecting strong market activity and steady capital flows.
Why is Monero upside pressure holding? While Monero’s rebound was not driven by events over the past days, investors have shown optimism with the recent structural upgrade.
As such, the THORChain network upgrade introduced native support for Monero swaps. The THORSChain 3.2 upgrade introduced Monero swaps against Bitcoin [BTC], Ethereum [ETH], and stablecoins.
This improvement has significantly improved XMR access and liquidity. Since it allows swaps XMR non-custodially on cross-chain DEX, it has become a major boost because of Monero restrictions on centralized exchanges.
Are speculators chasing the rally? Incentivized by this development, traders returned with strength across the market. Speculators, for example, have shown greater determination to capitalize on these market gains.
According to CoinGlass data, Monero’s Open Interest (OI) surged 16% to $304 million at press time, while the Derivatives Volume rose 319% to $325 million.
Source: Coinglass When OI and volume rise in tandem, it reflects increased market participation and capital inflow. Thus, traders deployed significant capital into opening new positions.
Meanwhile, the Long/Short Ratio climbed above 1, excluding Binance top traders. At 1.08, the ratio implied that most traders were bullish and were betting on more gains.
Can XMR sustain these gains? Monero‘s bullish pressure has intensified, with demand becoming sustainable, which in turn has strengthened upward momentum. In fact, a look at the momentum indicators validates this view. The altcoin’s Stochastic Momentum Index (SMI) extended its surge, hiking to 60 as of writing.
With the SMI edging deep into the bullish zone, it suggested that upside momentum is strong with bulls enjoying commanding control.
Source: TradingView Likewise, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) also extended its surge, rising to the overbought zone. At 80, RSI further confirms buyers have total control of the market.
As of now, these two indicators signal that the prevailing trend is most likely to continue. Therefore, if the market demand recently witnessed holds, Monero will reclaim $527 and target $546 in the short term.
However, if the attempted upside move fails again, XMR is likely to fall below $500, with $460 as a key support level.
Final Summary Monero extended its bullish structure, rising 9%, to reclaim and flip $500, reaching a local high of $520. XMR’s upside momentum although driven by strong demand , recent THORChain upgrade has incentivized investors to return.
31 August 2026 | 13:26 Monero led major cryptocurrencies as volume jumped 255%, but one trading pair carried most activity and THORChain’s anticipated native-XMR route remains delayed, leaving traders to judge whether momentum can last.
Key Takeaways XMR gained 10% as volume tripled. One KuCoin pair carried most volume. THORChain’s Monero rollout remains on hold. Daily RSI climbed above 84, raising risk. XMR outpaces every top-20 At 10:02 UTC on August 31, CoinGecko placed Monero near $532.29, up 10% over 24 hours and 22% over seven days. No other altcoin among the 20 largest cryptocurrencies by market value matched its daily gain.
Rolling 24-hour volume reached approximately $240.7 million, a 255% increase from the previous day. That implies an earlier comparison base of roughly $67.7 million and helps explain why the percentage change looks so dramatic. XMR’s market capitalization stood near $10 billion, making the latest turnover equivalent to about 2.4% of its market value.
The higher volume shows that more trading accompanied the price advance, but it does not represent $240.7 million of new investment. Every completed trade adds to the figure, and the same coins can change hands repeatedly.
Five days earlier, Coindoo’s review of a cooling altcoin market found XMR down 1.2% for the day and up 7.8% over seven days. By August 31, the reported weekly return had expanded by 14.4 percentage points.
Monero’s move also fits an older sector theme. In July, our team found that nine of the ten largest privacy coins finished the week higher. That history provides context for renewed interest in privacy assets, but it cannot identify the trigger for this particular 10% move.
One KuCoin pair carried 56% of the volume CoinGecko tracked XMR across 18 exchanges and 48 markets, but the activity was heavily concentrated. KuCoin’s XMR/USDT pair generated approximately $134.2 million, accounting for 56.2% of all tracked volume.
The concentration does not erase the increase, but it narrows what the headline figure proves. Participation was not equally strong across the market, and more than half of the recorded turnover depended on one exchange and one pair.
Broader demand would look different: total volume would remain elevated while KuCoin’s share declined as other exchanges and trading pairs became more active. If overall volume falls as activity on that pair cools, the surge will look more like a brief concentration of momentum than a market-wide change in XMR demand.
THORChain has not launched native XMR swaps yet The trading data show that activity increased; they do not reveal why. Major development surrounding Monero is THORChain’s planned native integration, although the official timeline does not support treating it as a completed catalyst.
Monero applies privacy by default, concealing transaction amounts and making senders and recipients difficult to link. That design distinguishes it from networks where confidential transfers are optional, but it has also contributed to XMR’s removal or restriction on several centralized platforms.
THORChain’s proposed integration would offer another route. Users could exchange native XMR for assets on other supported networks without wrapping the coin or depositing it with a centralized custodian.
In its July soft-launch plan, THORChain described the Monero code as close to ready and planned to begin with a clearly labeled beta. The cautious rollout reflects work that its existing integrations do not require: Monero’s transaction outputs and signing process must be handled through a separate technical setup.
The schedule changed before launch. On August 27, THORChain placed XMR and Zcash on an initial one-to-two-week hold while it reviewed network stability following version 3.20 and a pending hotfix. Monero also remained absent from THORChain’s supported-asset list at the time of writing.
Monero’s protocol plans are separate Monero’s own roadmap should not be confused with THORChain’s integration. The official roadmap places Full-Chain Membership Proofs, the Cuprate Rust node, Bulletproofs++ and the Seraphis/Jamtis codebase in its “Coming Soon” section. None was announced on August 31 as a fresh reason for the price move.
There is therefore no verified same-day fundamental announcement that explains the rally. The prospect of easier decentralized access may be attracting interest, but the available data cannot separate that expectation from momentum trading or a broader rotation into privacy assets.
Monero’s daily chart is strong but extended Prices moved quickly during the session.
Monero (XMR/USD) price chart showing a sharp surge and RSI indicator.
On the daily chart, XMR stood well above its major moving averages. The 50-day simple moving average was near $386, while the 100- and 200-day averages were clustered around $360 and $359. At approximately 39% above the 50-day average, price had no nearby moving-average support if profit-taking accelerated.
Daily RSI reading reached 84 which reflects strong momentum rather than an automatic reversal signal, but it also shows that the advance has had little time to reset. A routine pullback can become sharp when buyers enter after such an extended move.
The first level to watch is $500, both a round number and the area needed to preserve most of the latest breakout. The measured advance began near $486.32, making a daily close below that level a clearer sign that the latest leg had failed. The previous consolidation around $470 would then become relevant.
On the upside, $540 marks the immediate overhead area around the latest price readings. A daily close above it would leave $560 as the next visible round-number zone, although that level is a reference point rather than a guaranteed target.
What would make the rally more convincing Usable native swaps: THORChain launches XMR support, and its pool develops enough depth to process swaps without excessive slippage. Broader participation: Total volume stays elevated while KuCoin’s 56.2% share declines as activity spreads to other venues. A calmer chart: RSI retreats toward the 60-70 area while XMR continues closing above $500. The 255% volume increase shows that traders noticed Monero. It does not yet show whether they arrived for native-swap access, the wider privacy trade or short-term momentum. Actual THORChain usage, broader exchange participation and XMR’s behavior after RSI cools will provide a clearer answer than the size of one day’s price candle.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency prices are volatile, and market data can change rapidly.
Author
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
Five altcoins broke out during mid-August, and four of them now carry dated September catalysts that could extend or end the move.
The turn rolled through the market in stages. Uniswap bottomed on August 14, and Solana volume spiked on August 19. Zcash, Monero, and Hyperliquid then broke out together on August 22.
Zcash (ZEC) Broke Out 3 Days Before Its ETF LaunchedRank: 10
Price: $838.78
Market Cap: $14.18 billion
Grayscale listed the first US spot Zcash product on NYSE Arca on August 25 under the ticker ZCSH. The debut was quiet, drawing roughly $14.8 million in first-session volume. Notably, the breakout preceded the listing by three days.
ZEC cleared its November 2025 cycle high near $750 on August 22. It then reached $888, just under the 1.272 Fibonacci extension at $903. The next extension sits at $1,099. This is an eight-year high rather than a record, since ZEC peaked above $3,190 in October 2016.
ZEC daily chart / Source: TradingviewMeanwhile, a coinholder poll on the NU7 upgrade closes September 14. One question asks whether to replace the halving schedule with a smooth issuance curve. Rejection at $903 could return the price to the $750 breakout level, which held on August 25.
Monero (XMR) Closes In on a Record Above $800Rank: 13
Price: $536.77
Market Cap: $10.13 billion
THORChain enabled native Monero swaps on August 25, allowing direct trades against Bitcoin and stablecoins without wrapping. That partly routes around the exchange delistings that hit the asset through 2025. However, XMR carries no dated September catalyst.
The chart broke above the May swing high on August 22 and added 26.5% in seven days. XMR now tests the 0.5 Fibonacci retracement at $538. Above it sits the 0.618 golden pocket at $600, then the record high of $799.89 set on January 14.
XMR daily chart / Source: TradingviewIn contrast to Zcash, this move looks derivatives-led. Open interest roughly doubled in two weeks to about $278 million, and futures volume runs far above spot. A squeeze that builds this fast can unwind just as fast. Earlier privacy coin positioning showed the same pattern.
The immediate support for XMR sits at $476.53.
Hyperliquid (HYPE) Faces a $1.2 Billion Unlock on September 29Rank: 9
Price: $81.78
Market Cap: $18.18 billion
Hyperliquid routes 99% of order-book fees into buybacks, currently worth roughly $58 million to $80 million a month. A release of about 14.2 million HYPE, near $1.2 billion, lands on September 29. Roughly 47% goes to insiders.
HYPE cleared its prior record at $77 on August 22 and reached $86.71 five days later. The first target is the 1.272 extension at $92.37, followed by $111.93.
HYPE daily chart / Source: TradingviewHistorically, monthly releases moved price 14.1% lower in May, 1% higher in June, and 7% lower in July. From $81.78, that range maps to roughly $70 to $76, which brackets the $77 breakout level. Below that, support sits at $64.91, then $55.41, where the 0.618 retracement meets the trendline from January.
Uniswap (UNI) Burn Doubled to a Record in AugustRank: 29
Price: $5.12
Market Cap: $3.19 billion
Uniswap activated v4 protocol fees and Robinhood Chain fees in late July. August was the first full month with both running, and burn funding hit a record $8.9 million. That is roughly double the pace held since January.
UNI set a higher low on August 14, then cleared swing highs at $3.99 and $4.43. It now tests the 0.618 retracement near $4.94. Above that sit $5.66 and the January high at $6.57.
UNI daily chart / Source: TradingviewThe Senate cloture vote on the CLARITY Act falls in mid-September and needs 60 votes. Failure could stall the breakout. Therefore, the burn story needs a caveat, since a 20 million UNI annual growth budget keeps supply closer to neutral than deflationary.
Validators approved SIMD-0550 on August 28, doubling annual disinflation from 15% to 30%. Bitwise crossed $1 billion in Solana ETF assets the same day. Transaction V1 then activates on September 9, raising the maximum transaction size more than threefold.
SOL broke the 0.382 retracement at $93.98 and is now confirming the 0.5 level at $104.44 as support. Volume expanded from August 19. The next target is the 0.618 retracement at $114.89.
SOL daily chart / Source: TradingviewHowever, the fundamentals disagree with the chart. Network fees fell 44% quarter over quarter, and Solana’s share of global fees dropped to 17.3% from 26.6%. That divergence makes $104 the level that matters most.
What to Watch NextThe September calendar is tight. Transaction V1 lands on the 9th, the Zcash poll closes on the 14th, the CLARITY vote follows in mid-month, and Hyperliquid’s unlock arrives on the 29th.
Four of these five carry a dated event, and the leaders are extended after an eight-day breakout. Monero is the exception, so its path depends on flow rather than a catalyst.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
Monero users are turning to instant swaps and decentralized platforms as centralized exchanges restrict access to XMR.
As access to Monero has become more restricted on some centralized exchanges — notably after Binance delisted XMR globally on 20 February 2024, OKX removed XMR pairs on 5 January 2024, and Kraken restricted it for EEA users on 31 October 2024 — many users now rely on instant swap services and decentralized platforms.
This guide compares practical ways to exchange Monero without registration, focusing on USDT TRC20 to XMR, minimum amounts, confirmation requirements, and AML procedures.
Why use a Monero exchange without registration? Monero’s privacy features — ring signatures, stealth addresses, and confidential transactions — hide sender, receiver and amount on-chain. The best Monero exchange depends on whether the user prioritizes live pricing, decentralization or the number of supported assets.
However, the way to acquire or dispose of XMR still matters. Centralized exchanges that still list XMR usually require full identity verification and maintain user accounts.
Services that do not require registration let users create a one-time order, send crypto from their own wallet to a temporary deposit address, and receive the output directly in a controlled wallet.
This reduces the personal data trail associated with the exchange itself.
“No registration” is not the same as an unconditional guarantee that identity information will never be requested.
Most instant services apply automated AML screening. A standard-order flow usually proceeds without documents, but a flagged deposit can pause processing.
How should investors compare no-registration XMR exchanges? Useful comparison points include:
Supported XMR directions, especially USDT TRC20 → XMR, XMR → BTC and other assets. Whether an account or identity documents are needed to create a standard order. Minimum amounts; always check the live quote — they are pair- and liquidity-dependent. How the service handles incoming deposits and outgoing XMR. Stated AML / risk-screening policy. Custody model during the brief processing window. According to the official Monero Wallet CLI documentation, newly received XMR normally becomes spendable after 10 confirmations.
Which no-registration Monero exchanges are available in 2026? The following services are commonly used for accountless XMR swaps. The best XMR exchange for a particular transaction depends on the required pair, available rate, liquidity, and AML terms.
Descriptions reflect publicly available information and community testing as of mid-2026; always re-verify.
Quickex Quickex operates as an accountless instant exchange. Users can create an order without registration for standard pairs that include Monero.
The service supports XMR routes involving USDT across several networks, as well as BTC and ETH, including exchanges in both directions.
Minimum amounts appear in the live quote and are pair-dependent.
Newly received XMR typically becomes spendable after 10 Monero confirmations, which is approximately 20 minutes at Monero’s two-minute block target. This wallet unlock period should not be confused with the exchange provider’s own deposit-processing requirements.
Quickex applies risk-based AML screening. According to its published policy, suspicious transactions may be delayed for review and additional information can be requested.
For users specifically needing the reverse direction, the service provides an XMR to BTC route.
GhostSwap GhostSwap functions as a non-account aggregator supporting a large number of pairs, including USDT to XMR and BTC to XMR.
It markets a no-registration flow for standard swaps.
Minimums and exact confirmation counts are shown at quote time and depend on the backend liquidity provider used for that order.
ChangeNOW, StealthEX, and Godex These established instant-swap services (ChangeNOW, StealthEX, and Godex) allow creation of XMR-related orders without registration for ordinary volumes.
They typically offer both floating and fixed-rate options.
Minimum amounts, supported networks, including USDT TRC20, and confirmation expectations are displayed in the order interface and can differ by pair and current network conditions.
Trocador Trocador acts as a privacy-oriented aggregator. It does not hold funds itself but routes orders to partner services, allowing rate comparison while remaining within an accountless workflow for many routes.
Haveno Haveno is a decentralized, Tor-based peer-to-peer platform focused on Monero. It does not operate as a centralized instant swap. Trades rely on an order book and multisig-style escrow. It offers the greatest degree of decentralization among the listed options at the cost of potentially longer matching times and variable liquidity.
How do the leading monero exchanges compare?
ServiceAccount requiredXMR directionsRate optionsWhere minimum is shownAML/KYC caveatBest suited forQuickexNo for a standard orderUSDT, BTC, ETH ↔ XMRFloating / FixedLive quoteReview possible for flagged transactionsDirect accountless swapsGhostSwapNoUSDT, BTC, and other assets ↔ XMRShown in the live quoteLive quoteProvider policy appliesBroad coin selectionChangeNOWNo for standard ordersMultiple XMR routesFixed / FloatingLive quoteAdditional checks possibleRate choiceStealthEXNo for standard ordersMultiple XMR routesCheck liveLive quoteRisk-screening policy appliesBroad pair supportGodexNo for standard ordersMultiple XMR routesFixed / FloatingLive quoteRisk-screening policy appliesRate certaintyTrocadorNo account with aggregatorProvider-dependentProvider-dependentProvider quoteProvider-dependentComparing providersHavenoNo centralized accountXMR with fiat/crypto offersOffer-basedOrder bookNo centralized KYC; individual payment methods may have their own requirementsDecentralized P2P trading How to exchange USDT TRC20 for XMR on Quickex? A typical accountless flow looks like this:
Select USDT (TRC20) as the asset to send and XMR as the asset to receive. Enter a fresh Monero receiving address; a subaddress is preferable. Using a new subaddress for each incoming payment improves privacy by preventing address reuse. Review the live minimum, expected output, rate type, choose fixed or floating rate (fixed locks the receive amount for a limited window, floating follows the market), and any network notes. Send the exact amount of USDT TRC20 from a wallet to the one-time deposit address generated by the service. After the USDT deposit receives the required TRON confirmations, the service processes the swap and broadcasts the XMR transaction. Most Monero wallets display the incoming transaction relatively quickly.
Newly received XMR normally becomes spendable after 10 Monero confirmations, roughly 20 minutes under normal network conditions.
The service’s own internal detection or release threshold may differ slightly from the wallet unlock time. Always perform a small test transaction first and double-check the network, TRC20 vs ERC20, etc.
Can a no-KYC XMR exchange freeze a transaction? Yes. Even services that do not require registration for a standard order usually run automated risk screening.
If a deposit is flagged, for example due to associations with mixers, high-risk addresses or other risk indicators, the service may pause the order, request additional information or source-of-funds details, or process a refund according to its policy.
Quickex’s published AML documentation states that it applies risk-based checks and may request information when elevated risk is identified. Similar policies exist at most instant-swap providers.
Risk-screening outcomes depend on transaction history, counterparties, and the provider’s internal thresholds. Using a self-custody wallet does not by itself guarantee that a deposit will pass screening.
What are the risks of exchanging Monero without registration? Sending to the wrong network or an incorrect address is irreversible. Floating rates can move between the moment the quote is received and the moment the deposit is detected. Confirmation times vary with network conditions. AML review can delay or alter the outcome of an order. Regulatory treatment of privacy coins continues to evolve. Recommended practices include using a dedicated Monero wallet, the official Monero GUI or well-established self-custody options such as Feather or Cake Wallet, generating fresh subaddresses, verifying every detail in the order form, and keeping records of order IDs and transaction hashes.
Review each service’s terms and regional restrictions before accessing it via VPN or Tor, as policies differ.
Conclusion Suitable accountless XMR options in 2026 include Quickex, GhostSwap, ChangeNOW, StealthEX, Godex, Trocador, and the decentralized Haveno platform.
Instant services work well for straightforward routes such as USDT TRC20 → XMR, while Haveno maximizes removal of intermediaries. No single service is universally “best.”
Evaluate speed, live rates, minimums, confirmation expectations, and AML handling against personal priorities, and always confirm current details in the order interface before sending funds.
Combine careful platform selection with secure wallet practices to reduce operational risks during an XMR swap.
FAQ Can I exchange USDT TRC20 for XMR without registration? Yes, on multiple accountless instant services. Users can create an order, send USDT TRC20 to a temporary deposit address, and receive XMR in their own wallet.
No account is required to start a standard swap.
Can a no-registration Monero exchange still ask for ID? Yes, if automated AML screening flags the deposit. Most services allow standard orders without documents, but elevated-risk transactions can be paused pending review or additional information.
How many confirmations does a Monero exchange require? It depends on the service and the direction. Standard Monero wallets typically unlock newly received funds after 10 confirmations, about 20 minutes.
Instant services may use their own detection thresholds. Always check the specific order details.
What happens if an XMR exchange flags a transaction? The order may be delayed while the service reviews the deposit.
Outcomes can include a request for information, continued processing after clearance, or a refund according to the provider’s policy.
What is the minimum amount needed to exchange USDT for XMR? Minimums are pair- and liquidity-dependent and appear in the live quote.
They commonly fall in a modest range for stablecoin pairs but should be confirmed on the day of the swap.
What is the best XMR exchange without registration? There is no single best XMR exchange for every transaction. Quickex is one of the services that offers a direct XMR to BTC route without requiring registration for a standard order.
Disclosure: This content is provided by a third party. Neither crypto.news nor the author of this article endorses any product mentioned on this page. Users should conduct their own research before taking any action related to the company.
Rockstar Games broke its silence on the GTA 6 leaks on Wednesday, calling the past week heartbreaking for its team. The studio said the November 19 release date still stands.
The message lands one day before a Netflix extended look that aims to reset the story. Take-Two Interactive stock closed at $232.93 on Tuesday, down 0.24%.
Rockstar Apologizes as GTA 6 Leaks Spoil the RevealThe studio opened with an apology instead of a defense. Rockstar told players it never wanted them to see the game this way, and it thanked fans who sent messages of support.
More telling, however, was a parenthetical aside about development progress.
“We are very sorry that everything has taken as long as it has … from getting the game finished (nearly there!) to sharing more details and official gameplay.”
That line is the clearest status update Rockstar has offered since the delay. Meanwhile, the studio admitted that spoilers may now dull the experience it designed.
Rockstar also flagged a second slip. The extended look took longer to get ready than the team wanted, a rare hint at internal timing pressure.
The leaks began on Aug. 18 and never let up. Clips showed protagonist Jason shooting hoops, flying a plane and triggering a six star wanted level, alongside map images of the fictional state of Leonida.
Take-Two Interactive Software Stock Chart. Source: TradingViewInvestors had already priced in the damage. Take-Two lost $2.83 billion in market value across two sessions, and the stock sits 9.61% lower for the year.
The stakes reach beyond one publisher. Console makers raised hardware prices this summer while positioning for the biggest launch in gaming.
Take-Two Turns to the Courts and NetflixLegal pressure escalated first. On August 20, Take-Two filed two subpoenas in the Southern District of New York, naming Microsoft and Discord.
The filings demand device identifiers, login IP addresses, phone numbers, and linked accounts for members of three Discord servers since June 1. Both companies face a September 4 deadline.
The publisher wants the identity behind CyberLeek, the group that has released the footage in daily batches.
CyberLeek frames the campaign as a protest rather than theft, citing opposition to digital-only preorders. Yet the group has meanwhile monetized the attention. It now asks for 400 Monero (XMR), roughly $165,000, simply to open a conversation about ad space on future drops.
Crypto traders moved faster than Wall Street. An unaffiliated CYBERLEEK meme coin rallied 1,400% during the fallout, while a tokenized TTWO listing on Solana handed traders another way to bet on the outcome.
Rockstar now gets one clean shot at the narrative. Thursday’s extended look will test whether official gameplay can outrun eight days of stolen clips before the November 19 launch.
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An attacker exploited a vulnerability in the Cosmos EVM to move $50 million of Nesa (NES) off the project’s chain. However, the payout came to $60,000.
Blockchain analytics firm Bubblemaps traced the wallets involved. Liquidity vanished from the pools before the selling finished, and extreme slippage swallowed almost the entire position.
How the Nesa Exploit UnraveledThe main wallet, 0x9AE7, bought $250,000 of NES and bridged the tokens to Nesa Chain. Bubblemaps said the address was funded through Monero (XMR).
The attacker exploited the bug, inflating that balance by 200 times. He then bridged roughly $50 million of NES back to Ethereum (ETH).
From there, the tokens moved through eight addresses. Those wallets swapped NES for ETH on decentralized exchanges before routing proceeds to centralized platforms.
However, liquidity disappeared from the pools before most of the selling happened. The swaps hit extreme slippage, and the attacker recovered $315,000 against $255,000 spent.
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Cosmos Labs Told Chains to HaltCosmos Labs disclosed the incident on August 24 and advised chains in contact with it to have validators halt.
“Many affected chains have now patched. We continue to provide mitigation information to affected chains. Chains that use a Cosmos EVM version less than v0.6.2 or v0.7.2 are recommended to immediately halt the blockchain and upgrade it to include the patches in those releases,” the team said in an update.
It has not yet named the vulnerability, the affected chains, or the total loss figure. The team has promised an incident report once the response ends.
Four networks running the shared module have reported problems. KiiChain said an attacker repeated the same technique 18 times, draining 148,326,583.15 KII.
Nesa also notified users that it had identified malicious activity exploiting the Cosmos EVM vulnerability on its layer-1. The team said they will bring the services online after a software fix. Other impacted networks include MANTRA and TAC.
Whether other chains running the module took quieter losses will not be clear until Cosmos Labs publishes its report.
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Tencent's Hunyuan Hy4 Overwhelmed Just 3 Days After Launch: WorkBuddy Undergoes Emergency Scaling
Beating AI News Flash: After Tencent’s Hunyuan Hy4 preview launched on WorkBuddy, usage surged, leading to queuing issues. The joint project team of WorkBuddy and Hunyuan issued a notice stating that it is urgently scaling up the Hy4 preview inference cluster and will continue to dynamically add resources based on usage. Hy4 preview is Tencent’s new-generation flagship model released and open-sourced on August 28, with 770 billion total parameters, 49 billion activated per inference, and a 1 million-token context window. It was integrated with WorkBuddy, CodeBuddy, Yuanbao, and Ima on its release day, offering a two-week free trial on WorkBuddy and CodeBuddy. Just three days after launch, WorkBuddy has already faced queuing due to peak concurrent usage. The team noted that total high-end computing power and peak concurrent capacity remain limited, so queuing may still occur during some periods even after scaling. Temporary solutions include switching back to Hy3 or avoiding evening peak hours. The free trial period for Hy3 on WorkBuddy has been extended to September 30 at 23:59.
7 minutes ago
The 'US Stock Market Top Winner' liquidated all long positions in HYPE, returned to trading US stocks, and opened new NVDA positions worth $24.5 million.
According to monitoring by TradingBeats (formerly Hyperinsight), the previously tracked "US Stock Market Winner" has largely exited its long positions in HYPE. The whale’s HYPE contract long positions have dropped from around 152,800 units to just 11.82 units, while its spot account holds only approximately 374.9 HYPE tokens. Its primary risk exposure has now refocused on US stocks. Currently, this whale holds a 20x fully leveraged long position of roughly 112,800 NVDA contracts, with a position value of about $24.495 million and an average entry price of $220.08. NVDA is trading at around $217.15, resulting in an unrealized loss of roughly $330,000 on the position, with a return of approximately -26.6%. The position was opened two days ago. Additionally, the whale has placed 169 sell orders around NVDA: 40 "position-reduction only" sell orders at $221.7 to $222.5, planning to reduce holdings by around 46,200 units, with a nominal value of approximately $10.267 million, covering about 41% of its current long position. Another 129 non-position-reduction sell orders are placed at $218.95 to $228.33, targeting the sale of around 192,500 units, with a nominal value of roughly $42.586 million. The number of these orders exceeds the whale’s current NVDA long position by approximately 70.7%. If the non-position-reduction sell orders are fully executed, the whale may shift to a short position after exiting its remaining NVDA long holdings. Currently, this whale is the largest NVDA holder on Hyperliquid. On-chain perpetual and address analysis tool TradingBeats is now live, supporting real-time access to Hyperliquid data, tracing whale operations from addresses, and delivering in-depth analysis for full visibility.
7 minutes ago
Whale Tracking: Amid renewed US-Iran clashes, smart money flipped to go long on 5.5 million barrels of crude oil, while ramping up positions on "invasion of Iran" prediction shares.
According to monitoring by TradingBeats (formerly Hyperinsight), U.S. forces struck two rocket launch sites on Iran’s Larak Island overnight, a development that sent international oil prices soaring in a gap-up move. WTI crude oil contracts (CL) on Hyperliquid are currently trading at $85.45, up roughly 3.2% in 24 hours. Geopolitical conflict-focused trader xm39, who has been closely tracked, adjusted positions in both crude oil and prediction markets amid this price swing. Between 7:32 and 8:00 AM today, its associated address added roughly 28,400 WTI short contracts against the market trend, with a transaction value of around $2.401 million. As oil prices continued to rise, the address closed out all 107,400 short contracts at 9:01 AM, with an average closing price of ~$84.86, booking a realized loss of approximately $131,500. Just about 10 minutes later, it flipped its trading direction from short to long. The address then sequentially bought roughly 64,700 WTI contracts, and currently holds a long position of ~$5.531 million at 20x full leverage, with an unrealized profit of ~$18,200, a margin return rate of around 6.6%, and a liquidation price of ~$64.88. Meanwhile, xm39 also continued to increase its geopolitical conflict bets on Polymarket. Between 7:43 and 7:51 AM today, it purchased a total of 274,500 Yes shares for the market question “Will the U.S. invade Iran before 2027” in three separate trades, executed at probabilities of 14%, 15%, and 16% respectively, for a total investment of ~$41,700. This round of purchases expanded its position in this prediction market by roughly 74.7%. Currently, xm39 holds a total of 642,300 Yes shares, with an accumulated cost of ~$127,100, at an average entry probability of 19.79%; the current market probability for the question is ~15.5%, resulting in an unrealized loss of approximately $27,600.
7 minutes ago
Two crypto whales made high-profile buys of ETH, totaling $140 million.
According to monitoring by TradingBeats (formerly Hyperinsight), two large ETH whale addresses have continued to add to their long positions from last night to this morning, purchasing a total of 23,245.3 ETH in perpetual contracts, with a trading volume of approximately $57.752 million and a weighted average execution price of around $2,484.4. As of press time, ETH is trading at $2,414.6. The two addresses currently hold a combined 60,036.2 ETH long positions, with a total position value of roughly $145 million, a weighted average entry price of about $2,480.8, and a combined unrealized loss of approximately $3.975 million. Whale address 0x0392: Between 00:07 and 00:36 today, it purchased 13,078.1 ETH in concentrated trades, with a trading volume of around $32.662 million. It currently holds 45,087.3 ETH long positions with 8x full leverage, valued at roughly $109 million, at an average entry price of $2,486.4, posting an unrealized loss of about $3.236 million, a return rate of -23.1%, and a liquidation price of approximately $2,251.2. Whale address 0x77dd: Between 18:31 and 22:38 last night, it bought 10,167.3 ETH, with a trading volume of around $25.09 million. It currently holds 14,948.9 ETH long positions with 12x full leverage, valued at roughly $36.1 million, at an average entry price of $2,464, with an unrealized loss of about $738,000, a return rate of -24.1%, and a liquidation price of approximately $2,144.8. On-chain perpetual (Perp) and address analysis tool TradingBeats is now live, supporting real-time access to Hyperliquid data, tracing whale activities from addresses, and delivering in-depth analysis for full visibility.
7 minutes ago
Codex's active users exceed 25 million, just 10 days after hitting the 20 million milestone; paid users' quotas have been reset for two consecutive days.
Beating AI News: OpenAI core product lead Tibo announced that Codex has reached 25 million active users. To mark this milestone, OpenAI has once again reset usage quotas for all paid Codex and ChatGPT Work users, marking the second consecutive day of such resets. Yesterday, OpenAI had already reset quotas for all paid users due to issues with 8 categories of abnormal quota consumption. Tibo had noted at the time that the planned milestone celebration would be moved to the next day, as the reset button had already been pressed that day. The second reset arrived as scheduled today. Codex has seen rapid user growth: as recently as August 21, Tibo announced Codex had hit 20 million active users, alongside a one-time storable quota reset. Just 10 days after that announcement, the user base has grown by another 5 million. Tibo joked in closing: “More news from The Reset Company will be coming soon.”
7 minutes ago
Tectonic Suffers Over $75 Million Loss From Attack, Cronos Network Suspends Services
Per monitoring by @lookonchain, Tectonic (@TectonicFi) on the Cronos network suffered an attack, resulting in losses exceeding $75 million. The attacker has bridged $6.29 million in assets to the Ethereum network and converted them into 2,592 ETH, while approximately $68.7 million worth of assets remain pending on Cronos. Currently, the Cronos network has suspended services.
George Town, Cayman Islands, August 25th, 2026, Chainwire
THORChain, a decentralized exchange, announced the launch of THORChain 3.20, an upgrade introducing native support for Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC) swaps.
Until now, moving between privacy coins such as XMR or ZEC and the crypto market has required users to rely on centralized exchanges, custodial services, or additional intermediary steps. With THORChain 3.20, users can natively swap XMR and ZEC against assets including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and stablecoins directly through THORChain.
No wrapped versions of XMR or ZEC are required. Users do not need to create an account or hand custody of their assets to a centralized entity. This is a significantly more direct route between privacy-focused cryptocurrencies and the most widely used assets in crypto.
For Monero holders, access to the broader crypto market has become an increasingly important issue as XMR continues to be removed or restricted by centralized exchanges. THORChain’s integration provides an alternative based on native assets and self-custody rather than requiring users to deposit their coins with an exchange.
The release is one of THORChain’s most significant upgrades to date. In addition to Monero and Zcash integration, version 3.20 introduces several broader changes to the protocol, including Protocol-Owned Liquidity (POL) and the new Stable Reserve, alongside renewed support for Solana, Base, and BNB. The Stable Reserve introduces stablecoin-to-stablecoin swaps with no liquidity fees, and Protocol-Owned Liquidity gives THORChain additional mechanisms for deploying protocol capital across the network.
The move builds on THORChain’s core proposition of allowing users to exchange native cryptocurrencies across otherwise disconnected blockchain networks without handing control of their assets to an intermediary.
THORChain already enables native cross-chain swaps across assets including Bitcoin and Ethereum. The addition of privacy-focused networks expands that model into an area of the crypto market where decentralized access has been far more limited until today.
About THORChain THORChain is a decentralized exchange that enables users to swap native digital assets across different blockchain networks without relying on wrapped assets or centralized custodians. It allows users to exchange assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other supported cryptocurrencies while maintaining a self-custodial experience.
George Town, Cayman Islands, 25th August 2026, ChainwireBy Chainwire
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George Town, Cayman Islands, August 25th, 2026, Chainwire
THORChain, a decentralized exchange, announced the launch of THORChain 3.20, an upgrade introducing native support for Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC) swaps.
Until now, moving between privacy coins such as XMR or ZEC and the crypto market has required users to rely on centralized exchanges, custodial services, or additional intermediary steps. With THORChain 3.20, users can natively swap XMR and ZEC against assets including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and stablecoins directly through THORChain.
No wrapped versions of XMR or ZEC are required. Users do not need to create an account or hand custody of their assets to a centralized entity. This is a significantly more direct route between privacy-focused cryptocurrencies and the most widely used assets in crypto.
For Monero holders, access to the broader crypto market has become an increasingly important issue as XMR continues to be removed or restricted by centralized exchanges. THORChain’s integration provides an alternative based on native assets and self-custody rather than requiring users to deposit their coins with an exchange.
The release is one of THORChain’s most significant upgrades to date. In addition to Monero and Zcash integration, version 3.20 introduces several broader changes to the protocol, including Protocol-Owned Liquidity (POL) and the new Stable Reserve, alongside renewed support for Solana, Base, and BNB. The Stable Reserve introduces stablecoin-to-stablecoin swaps with no liquidity fees, and Protocol-Owned Liquidity gives THORChain additional mechanisms for deploying protocol capital across the network.
The move builds on THORChain’s core proposition of allowing users to exchange native cryptocurrencies across otherwise disconnected blockchain networks without handing control of their assets to an intermediary.
THORChain already enables native cross-chain swaps across assets including Bitcoin and Ethereum. The addition of privacy-focused networks expands that model into an area of the crypto market where decentralized access has been far more limited until today.
About THORChain
THORChain is a decentralized exchange that enables users to swap native digital assets across different blockchain networks without relying on wrapped assets or centralized custodians. It allows users to exchange assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other supported cryptocurrencies while maintaining a self-custodial experience.
THORChain just gave privacy coin holders something they’ve been waiting years for: a way to trade Monero and Zcash directly for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins without touching a centralized exchange or dealing with wrapped token workarounds. XMR responded by jumping roughly 8.9%.
The cross-chain decentralized exchange protocol rolled out version 3.20 on August 25, introducing native swap support for both XMR and ZEC. In a crypto landscape where privacy tokens keep getting booted from centralized platforms, that’s not just a technical upgrade. It’s a lifeline.
What v3.20 actually does Traders can now swap XMR or ZEC directly against BTC, ETH, and stablecoins through THORChain’s liquidity pools. The transactions remain self-custodial throughout, meaning users never hand over control of their assets to a third party during the swap process.
Beyond the privacy coin integrations, the upgrade packs two other notable features. Protocol-Owned Liquidity, or POL, gives the protocol itself a stake in its own liquidity pools. The second addition is a Stable Reserve mechanism that enables fee-free stablecoin swaps.
Months in the making This wasn’t a surprise announcement. THORChain’s development team showed off a live demo of Monero swaps back in May 2026, and preliminary code had been quietly folded into earlier releases. The project has described Monero integration as one of its most technically complex efforts to date.
The team opted for a phased launch strategy, acknowledging that liquidity for XMR and ZEC pools will likely be thin at the outset. Shallow pools mean higher slippage on larger trades, so the early days will probably work best for smaller swaps while liquidity depth builds organically.
Why this matters beyond the price pump The 8.9% XMR price surge is the attention-grabbing number, but the structural implications run deeper. Over the past several years, centralized exchanges have been steadily delisting privacy coins under regulatory pressure. Binance dropped Monero in multiple jurisdictions. OKX followed. Kraken trimmed its privacy coin offerings in certain markets.
The Protocol-Owned Liquidity feature could accelerate that process. By deploying protocol-controlled capital into its own XMR and ZEC pools, THORChain can bootstrap the liquidity depth that outside providers might be slow to commit.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
The group behind the Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6) leaks hit back at Rockstar Games within hours on Wednesday. It repeated its demand for physical discs and accused the studio of playing the victim.
CyberLeek, the account driving the leak campaign, posted its answer on X. The reply reignited a dispute that has run since June.
Rockstar Writes to Fans, But Skips the GTA 6 Physical Discs QuestionRockstar broke a week of silence on Wednesday with an open letter to its community. The studio called the leaks heartbreaking for its team. It apologized to fans for the long wait.
“It would be an understatement to say that having videos of Grand Theft Auto VI gameplay leak this way has been heartbreaking for our team, and this is obviously not how we intended for you to see the game after all this time.”
The full Rockstar statement thanks supporters, confirms the Nov. 19 launch, and warns that spoilers may hurt the intended experience.
However, it never mentions discs and never names CyberLeek. That silence triggered the reply, which cast the studio as the aggressor rather than the injured party.
Rockstar are trying to act like the victims here.
Do they really think that we'll forget how they're trying to scam the whole community?
Where's the discs @RockstarGames?
We're done with your games
We will not stop fighting for our rights.
We deserve it to own what we buy. https://t.co/zGvhwrihfd
— CyberLeekOfficial (@DaRealCyberLeek) August 26, 2026 The group has released footage in daily batches since Aug. 18. Its demands include pressed discs for pre-orders and an offline fallback for single-player content.
It also wants an end to what it calls fake single-player expansions. That means content already sitting in the game files, locked until players pay again. CyberLeek says it will not stop until publishers apologize and commit to change.
Why the Ownership Fight Keeps GrowingRockstar confirmed in June that boxed copies will hold a download code instead of a disc. Buyers therefore get a license, not a physical product. Take-Two chief executive Strauss Zelnick told analysts on Aug. 7 that discs no longer make sense for consumers.
Meanwhile, the wider industry is moving the same way. Sony will stop pressing game discs in January 2028. A PlayStation disc backlash petition has since gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures.
Still, the preservation movement itself has pushed back. Stop Killing Games, a campaign for continued access to purchased titles, rejected the leak tactics outright.
“Using illegal means to make a point is unacceptable to us and does nothing to protect our right to keep using what we paid for.”
Money clouds the protest further. CyberLeek also sells ad space inside its leak videos. Brands must send 400 Monero (XMR), worth roughly $172,000, just to open the conversation.
That fee buys no placement, only a reply. The privacy coin is trading near $431. A separate CyberLeek meme coin rally added 1,400% last week.
Take-Two has shed market value since the leak campaign started.
Netflix airs an extended GTA 6 look on Thursday, and Rockstar hopes official footage retakes the story. Whether that works or simply gives leakers a bigger audience becomes clear within days.
Cover image via depositphotos.com Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.
As XMR trades close to $415, Monero is approaching a technically significant crossover as its medium-term moving averages converge around $360–$363, possibly creating a new golden cross. The setup may strengthen the improving structure seen throughout the daily chart and follows a significant recovery from July lows.
Bullish reversal hits XMRFor a bullish trend reversal, XMR has already completed a large portion of the necessary work. The cryptocurrency set a series of higher lows after bottoming out between $310 and $320 in June and July, and it eventually recovered the $350 resistance area. August quickened the pace of change, driving XMR through $380 and ultimately over $400. Now, the moving averages are reacting.
XMR/USDT Chart by TradingViewThe blue moving average has risen to $360.09, while the orange moving average is currently close to $362.85. There is now less than $3 between them. XMR will print a golden cross if the faster blue average keeps rising and crosses above the orange line. This indicates that medium-term momentum has shifted more and more in favor of buyers. The larger structure provides further confirmation.
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Three significant averages have essentially compressed into the same $360–$363 range, as evidenced by the long-term black moving average, which is currently at $361.31. This cluster is becoming increasingly significant as XMR trades more than 14% above it. However, momentum conditions must be taken into account before treating the signal as a guarantee of continuation.
RSI hits overbought thresholdsThe RSI is already near the traditional overbought threshold of 70, at about 67. Additionally, XMR has hit the resistance range of $415-$425, which rejected the price in May. Therefore, a breakout above roughly $425–$430 would carry greater immediate significance than the golden cross.
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If that region is cleared, $440-$450 may come into view, followed by the much larger resistance zone at $480-$500. The first significant dynamic support is $388 if XMR rejects from current levels instead.
The $360–$365 cluster becomes crucial below that. The bullish case is supported by the emerging golden cross, but the price has already largely anticipated the signal. To confirm the next phase of the recovery, XMR must now turn its improving moving-average structure into a breakout above the May highs.
Most comparisons of these two coins are technology shootouts, and technology shootouts are the wrong argument. Monero hides more by default. This has been true for a decade, nobody serious disputes it, and it has not settled the question of which coin is the better holding, because the thing actually deciding the privacy sector right now is not cryptography. It is permission. One of these coins is welcome on regulated exchanges and inside institutional wrappers. The other keeps getting removed from them. Five rounds, each with a stated winner, then a verdict and the one date that could overturn it.
The Tale of the Tape Zcash (ZEC)Monero (XMR)Recent pricearound $545recorded near $390 to $450 in 2026Market caproughly $8 to 9 billionroughly $7.5 billionPrivacy modeloptional shielded, zk-SNARKsmandatory, on by defaultMax supply21 million, fixeduncapped, tail emissionCirculatingroughly 16.8 million of 21 millionroughly 18.7 millionInflationhalving schedule, Bitcoin-styleabout 0.6 XMR per block, under 1% long termLaunched20162014Regulated exchange accessbroadly listedremoved from most regulated venues Figures compiled from recent public readings, as of August 2026, from CoinGecko and CoinGecko. Both assets are volatile and figures move fast; verify before acting.
Round 1: Privacy Monero’s round, decisively, and it is the least controversial statement on this page.
Monero hides the sender, receiver and amount on every single transaction, using ring signatures, stealth addresses and confidential transactions. There is no setting to forget, no optional mode, no user error. Everyone’s transactions look alike, which also gives XMR true fungibility: no coin carries a traceable history that an exchange could flag. After the FCMP++ upgrade in early 2026, tracing an XMR transaction reportedly requires analyzing the entire unspent output set, well over 1.8 million outputs, and no analytics firm has publicly demonstrated reliable tracing at scale since.
Zcash’s cryptography is arguably more advanced. zk-SNARKs are a genuine breakthrough and shielded z-to-z transactions are cryptographically private. But privacy is opt-in, and for most of Zcash’s history the majority of transactions were transparent, which weakens the anonymity set for everyone using shielded addresses. A privacy tool that most people leave switched off provides less privacy than a weaker tool that is always on.
Winner: Monero. Best argument for Zcash anyway: shielded pool usage has been growing substantially, and optionality is a design choice rather than a flaw. A coin that can prove compliance when required has doors open to it that a mandatory-privacy coin does not.
Round 2: Supply and Monetary Policy Zcash copied Bitcoin’s homework: a hard cap of 21 million coins, roughly 16.8 million circulating, block rewards halving on schedule with the last halving completed in November 2024. For anyone whose thesis is digital scarcity, this is the cleaner structure, and it is the reason ZEC comparisons to Bitcoin keep appearing.
Monero has no cap. It runs a tail emission of about 0.6 XMR per block, permanently, which keeps long-term inflation under 1% and falling as a percentage over time. The purpose is deliberate: miners must always be paid, and a coin relying entirely on transaction fees for security has an uncertain future in Monero’s view. It is a defensible engineering decision and a genuine cost to holders.
Winner: Zcash, for holders who value a hard cap. Best argument for Monero anyway: sub-1% perpetual inflation that funds permanent network security is arguably a better trade than a fixed cap with an unproven long-term fee market. This round is closer than the winner label suggests, and it comes down to which risk you would rather carry.
Round 3: Access and Liquidity Here the sector’s actual dividing line appears.
Zcash remains listed on major regulated venues, including large US platforms, and has an institutional on-ramp through a Grayscale trust. Recent readings have shown ZEC’s daily volume spiking dramatically during rallies, and the coin has drawn public endorsement from at least one prominent crypto fund. That combination, regulated listings plus a fund wrapper plus a credible path toward further institutional products, is something Monero does not currently have.
Monero has been delisted from most regulated platforms over the years. It trades, it trades well, and its community has adapted through decentralized venues and peer-to-peer channels. But every delisting narrows the funnel through which new capital can arrive, and institutional money does not use workarounds.
Winner: Zcash, decisively. Best argument for Monero anyway: the demand never left, it simply went quiet during the regulatory risk-off period, and XMR reached a fresh all-time high near $798 in January 2026 without needing regulated exchange support. A coin that can rally to new highs while banned from the mainstream is demonstrating exactly the resilience its holders bought it for.
Round 4: Track Record Under Pressure Monero has been the primary target of regulatory and analytical attack for a decade. It has survived exchange delistings, government tracing bounties and sustained scrutiny, and its user base did not disperse. That is a genuine, tested result rather than a claim, and it is the strongest argument in Monero’s entire case.
Zcash has never been through the same fire, largely because its optional model made it a smaller target. Untested is not the same as safe. If regulators eventually decide that shielded transactions are the problem rather than mandatory ones, Zcash’s compliance advantage narrows fast, and the coin has no equivalent history of surviving a hostile environment.
Winner: Monero. Best argument for Zcash anyway: never having been targeted is not merely luck, it is partly the product of a design that gave regulators a workable answer. Avoiding the fight is a strategy, and so far it has worked.
Round 5: Regulatory Risk Both coins share the sector’s overhang, and it has a date attached.
The European Union’s Anti-Money Laundering Regulation is set to restrict anonymity-enhancing tokens at regulated providers from July 1, 2027. That is the single most important item on the privacy sector’s calendar, and it applies to a bloc of that size rather than a single exchange decision.
Monero carries more exposure to it, because a coin whose privacy cannot be switched off cannot be made compliant on request. Zcash carries the same headline risk with a plausible mitigation: transparent addresses and the ability to disclose, which is why exchanges have historically treated it as the workable option.
Winner: Zcash, on relative exposure. Best argument for Monero anyway: it has been living under this pressure for years and is priced accordingly, while Zcash’s premium partly reflects an assumption of regulatory acceptance that no regulator has actually guaranteed. Priced-in risk is safer than assumed-away risk.
The Verdict Scorecard: Zcash takes supply, access and regulatory exposure. Monero takes privacy and track record. Three to two for Zcash on rounds, but the split is unusually clean and maps onto two genuinely different buyers rather than a winner and a loser.
Zcash is the choice if you are buying the privacy narrative as an investment. Regulated access, a fixed 21 million cap, institutional wrappers and a compliance story that gives it permission to exist inside the regulated system. You are buying exposure to privacy demand through a vehicle the system tolerates.
Monero is the choice if you are buying privacy as a tool. It is the coin that actually does the thing, without configuration, with a decade of surviving hostility behind it. You are accepting worse access and a heavier regulatory target in exchange for the product working as advertised.
There is a defensible third position, which is holding both, because the two theses genuinely do not compete for the same capital.
The single fact that would flip this verdict: the shape of the EU’s AMLR implementation as July 1, 2027 approaches, and whether regulators draw the line at mandatory privacy or at privacy itself. If the rules end up targeting anonymity-enhancing technology broadly rather than non-disclosable privacy specifically, Zcash’s central advantage evaporates and its higher valuation becomes the liability rather than the endorsement. That is the one development this page will be watching, and it will say so loudly when the drafting becomes clear.
This article is for information only and is not investment advice. Crypto assets are extremely volatile and you can lose your entire stake. Always do your own research.
Frequently Asked Questions Is Monero more private than Zcash? Yes, in practice. Monero hides sender, receiver and amount on every transaction by default, while Zcash's shielded privacy is optional and historically most Zcash transactions have been transparent, which weakens the anonymity set for shielded users.
Which is the better investment, ZEC or XMR? They suit different theses. Zcash offers regulated exchange access, a fixed 21 million supply and institutional wrappers. Monero offers stronger actual privacy and a decade of surviving regulatory pressure, with worse access. Both are high risk.
Why is Monero delisted from exchanges? Its mandatory privacy means transactions cannot be disclosed on request, which conflicts with compliance obligations at regulated venues. Zcash's optional transparency gives exchanges a workable answer, which is why it has retained more listings.
Does Zcash have a supply cap? Yes, 21 million coins, the same cap as Bitcoin, with roughly 16.8 million in circulation and a halving-based emission schedule. Monero has no cap, using a permanent tail emission that keeps long-term inflation below 1%.
What is the EU AMLR and how does it affect privacy coins? The EU's Anti-Money Laundering Regulation is set to restrict anonymity-enhancing tokens at regulated providers from July 1, 2027. It is the single largest scheduled regulatory event facing the privacy coin sector.
Can Monero still be traced? Following the FCMP++ upgrade in early 2026, tracing reportedly requires analyzing the entire unspent output set of well over 1.8 million outputs, and no analytics firm has publicly demonstrated reliable tracing at scale since. Absence of a public demonstration is not proof of impossibility.
Should I buy both Zcash and Monero? The two coins serve different theses, institutional privacy exposure versus a working privacy tool, and they have historically not competed for the same capital. Holding both is a defensible position, though the sector shares one overhang: regulation.
Hackers have been capitalizing on a critical flaw in Apple’s built-in remote desktop tool to seize control of internet-facing Mac computers and turn them into cryptocurrency mining machines. The Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre has confirmed active abuse of the issue, with attackers installing software designed to generate Monero, a privacy-focused digital currency.
The vulnerability, identified as CVE-2026-65400, resides in the Screen Sharing service that ships with macOS.
This feature, which relies on the VNC protocol and listens on TCP port 5900, enables remote viewing and control of a Mac from another device.
Because of inadequate handling of internal state during the login process, an attacker already present on the same network can authenticate successfully without supplying any valid username or password.
Once inside, the intruder gains the ability to run programs, read files, alter settings and, crucially, obtain full administrative privileges.
Apple addressed the problem on 6 August 2026 by releasing emergency updates for three supported operating-system branches: macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9 and Sonoma 14.8.9.
The company explained that the fix improves state-management logic so that only legitimate credentials are accepted.
Although Screen Sharing is disabled by default on most systems, it is frequently enabled on servers and “bare-metal” Macs hosted in data centres or remote facilities, leaving those machines reachable from the public internet.
On 12 August the Dutch cyber agency updated its advisory after receiving reports of real-world attacks.
In every confirmed incident, systems that had port 5900 open to the outside world were compromised.
Attackers achieved root-level access and immediately deployed Monero mining software.
The agency has not disclosed how many machines were affected, when the campaigns began, or which threat actors are responsible.
It has also not indicated whether the intrusions have been limited to cryptocurrency mining or whether additional malicious activity has occurred.
Monero is a common choice for illicit mining operations because of its resistance to detection and the relative efficiency of CPU-based mining.
Compromised Macs can quietly consume processing power and electricity while generating coins that are difficult to trace, delivering a steady revenue stream to the attackers with minimal further interaction.
Users and administrators are strongly urged to install the relevant security updates without delay.
Where immediate patching is not feasible, the safest temporary measure is to switch off Screen Sharing entirely through System Settings > General > Sharing. Organizations that rely on remote access should also ensure that port 5900 is not exposed directly to the internet and should place the service behind a VPN or other strong access controls.
The episode underscores the continuing risk posed by remote-access services that remain reachable from the open internet. Even features that are ordinarily switched off can become high-value targets once a bypass is discovered and public proof-of-concept code appears. Prompt application of vendor patches remains the most reliable defense.
LINK and WLFI Lead the Weekly ChargeFour major altcoins have stood out from the crowd over the past seven days. @Chainlink ($LINK), @0xPolygon ($POL), @worldlibertyfi ($WLFI), and @monero ($XMR) have all posted notable price moves, outperforming much of the broader crypto market.
$LINK and $WLFI were the clear highlights of the week, with both assets continuing to attract buying interest that has left most competing altcoins behind. Over the past month, the price of $LINK has increased by more than 15%, pointing to sustained momentum that extends beyond a single week.
Chainlink is a foundational layer for the crypto ecosystem, with over $28 trillion of value locked within DeFi, derivatives, gaming, and institutional finance relying on its network. Legacy institutions including J.P. Morgan, SWIFT, and Mastercard use Chainlink to connect smart contracts with real-world data, giving $LINK a utility argument that few altcoins can match.
POL and XMR Add to the Gains$POL, the native token of the Polygon network, jumped nearly 10% in the past week, making it one of the stronger performers among large-cap altcoins.
$XMR has been the standout story on a longer time horizon. The privacy-focused coin is up over 50% in the past year, a run that reflects growing demand for anonymous, untraceable transactions. Monero stands out in the crypto space for its strong focus on privacy and decentralization of transactions, making it one of the leading privacy-focused cryptocurrencies. By early August, XMR had reclaimed the 200-day EMA band as it sets its sights on the $422 resistance level once more.
During the last month alone, the price of $XMR has increased by 21.4%, suggesting the broader yearly trend is accelerating rather than fading.
Taken together, the performance of these four assets points to a rotation into projects with clear utility or strong narratives: oracle infrastructure, real-world finance integrations, layer-2 scaling, and privacy. Whether the momentum holds will depend on broader market conditions and whether buying pressure can be sustained into the weeks ahead.
Apple has patched a critical macOS Screen Sharing vulnerability after attackers exploited internet-facing Macs to gain root access and install Monero mining software, according to an updated warning from the Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre.
Summary
Apple patched CVE-2026-65400 after attackers exploited Mac Screen Sharing services to install Monero miners remotely. Dutch cybersecurity officials confirmed compromised Macs had root access and unauthorized Monero mining software installed. CISA now scores the authentication flaw 9.8 critical, up from its earlier 7.1 assessment overall. Huntress found tens of thousands of potentially exposed Macs, especially internet-hosted bare-metal Apple systems worldwide. Changing Screen Sharing passwords cannot fix the flaw; affected Macs require Apple security updates immediately. The Dutch NCSC updated its advisory on Aug. 12 to confirm active exploitation of CVE-2026-65400 on multiple systems with port 5900 exposed to the internet. In every reported case, attackers obtained root access and installed a Monero miner. The agency did not disclose how many Macs were compromised or identify the attackers.
Apple Screen Sharing flaw bypasses authentication Apple patched CVE-2026-65400 on Aug. 6 in macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9 and Sonoma 14.8.9. The company described it as an authentication flaw caused by improper state management that could allow an attacker on the network to access Screen Sharing without valid credentials.
Security firm Huntress found that the flaw affects the Secure Remote Password authentication process used by macOS Screen Sharing. Its analysis showed an attacker could cause the service to treat an unauthenticated connection as authenticated and obtain privileged access.
Because exploitation occurs before normal authentication, Huntress said changing a Screen Sharing password, disabling legacy VNC authentication or removing authorized user accounts does not address the vulnerability. The recommended fix is installing Apple’s latest security update or disabling Screen Sharing until the system can be patched.
Tens of thousands of Macs may have been exposed Huntress researcher Ryan Dowd said a Censys search identified “tens of thousands of potentially vulnerable hosts.” That estimate covers Macs that appeared exposed to the internet and should not be interpreted as tens of thousands of confirmed compromises.
The risk is particularly relevant to hosted bare-metal Macs, including Mac minis rented for remote workloads. Huntress said some hosting environments expose Screen Sharing services on newly provisioned machines, increasing the attack surface when systems have not yet received Apple’s Aug. 6 patches.
The flaw now carries a 9.8 critical CVSS score from CISA’s vulnerability analysis, with no privileges or user interaction required under its current assessment. The National Vulnerability Database shows that CISA upgraded the scoring on Aug. 14 after initially assigning a lower severity assessment.
Hackers used compromised Macs to mine Monero The Dutch cases involved cryptojacking rather than reported theft of wallet credentials. Attackers used the compromised Macs’ computing resources to mine Monero after obtaining root control. The NCSC has not disclosed the mining software, pool addresses, attacker wallets or resulting XMR proceeds.
Monero has repeatedly appeared in cryptojacking campaigns because it can be mined using general-purpose computing hardware. As crypto.news previously reported, a Darktrace investigation found malware quietly deploying cryptocurrency mining software after attackers gained access to Windows systems.
Apple devices have also faced other crypto-related malware campaigns. In related coverage,North Korean hackers targeted macOS users with malware aimed at crypto companies using fake meetings and malicious software updates.
Meanwhile, Monero (XMR) traded at around $414 at press time, indicating less the 1% increase in the past 24 hours and almost 5% in the past 7 days (according to crypto.news market data)
Monero (XMR) price chart, source: crypto.news What happens next The immediate priority is patching Macs running vulnerable versions of Sonoma, Sequoia and Tahoe. Systems exposed directly to the internet through Screen Sharing face the clearest documented risk, although Huntress recommends updating Macs even when administrators believe the service is disabled.
The Dutch NCSC has confirmed exploitation but has not attributed the campaign or published indicators identifying the Monero mining infrastructure. Further disclosures from incident responders could clarify how widespread the attacks became before Apple’s Aug. 6 fix.
Bitcoin traded around $63,460 during Asian hours on Monday, Aug. 17, recovering 0.7% over 24 hours but remaining 2.3% lower over seven days as the cryptocurrency market entered another week with limited momentum.
Summary
Bitcoin traded near $63,460 Monday, gaining 0.7% daily while remaining 2.3% lower across the week. Hyperliquid rose 3.4% daily and 8.7% weekly, outperforming most major cryptocurrencies during Monday morning trading. Monero traded near $413.84, gaining 4.9% weekly as momentum improved toward its $420–$430 resistance zone. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $390 million in net outflows across last week’s five sessions. Bitway led top-100 gainers with 22.3%, while Stable and Quant posted the largest daily declines. Bitcoin’s market capitalization stood near $1.27 trillion.
The broader crypto market was valued at roughly $2.24 trillion, while Bitcoin dominance remained close to 57%. Most large-cap cryptocurrencies posted modest daily gains, but weekly performance remained mixed after Bitcoin fell from above $65,000 during the previous week.
Bitcoin price remains below last week’s highs Bitcoin’s latest rebound has yet to erase the decline from last week’s $65,400 area. BTC fell as low as roughly $62,500 on Friday before stabilizing through the weekend and moving back above $63,000.
Ethereum was trading around $1,900.64, up 1% in 24 hours but 0.8% lower over seven days. XRP remained near $1.00 and was down 2.8% for the week. Solana traded around $75.47, down 0.1% daily and 1.4% weekly. BNB held near $605.63 and was 0.6% higher over seven days.
TRON changed hands near $0.332, gaining 0.4% daily and 0.7% weekly, while Dogecoin rose 0.6% to about $0.070.
The subdued Bitcoin performance follows another reversal in U.S. institutional flows. Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded roughly $390 million in combined net outflows between Aug. 10 and Aug. 14, with Fidelity’s FBTC accounting for about $153 million. Spot Ethereum ETFs recorded a smaller $2.26 million weekly net outflow.
Bitcoin spot ETF net inflow, source: SoSoValue That marked a sharp change from the previous week, when, as crypto.newspreviously reported, Bitcoin ETFs attracted $853.5 million across five consecutive inflow sessions.
HYPE and LINK outperform major altcoins Hyperliquid’s HYPE remained one of the strongest large-cap performers. The token traded around $58.81, gaining 3.4% over 24 hours and 8.7% during the past seven days. Its market capitalization stood near $13.1 billion.
Chainlink posted an even larger weekly increase among the top 20 cryptocurrencies. LINK traded near $9.45, gaining 0.7% on the day and 15.7% over seven days. Monero also outperformed Bitcoin, rising 4.9% weekly to around $413.84.
HYPE’s performance follows a period of renewed activity around Hyperliquid. In related coverage, crypto.newsreported that Hyperliquid generated $169 million in second-quarter revenue and directed $141 million toward HYPE buybacks.
Among the broader top-100 market-cap group, Bitway was the strongest daily performer in the latest crypto.news snapshot, rising 22.3%. Ether.fi followed with a 7.9% increase.
On the downside, Stable fell 3.7%, Quant lost 3.6%, and Canton declined 2.7%. Uniswap remained one of the weakest weekly performers among larger assets, falling 18.4% over seven days despite gaining 1.3% Monday.
Bitcoin tests resistance after steady recovery Bitcoin’s daily chart shows BTC consolidating after its sharp June pullback, with price hovering near $63,490 and posting a modest 0.94% intraday gain. Despite the short-term uptick, BTC continues to trade below the key resistance band around $65,000–$66,000, keeping the broader structure tilted to the downside compared with earlier cycle highs. In the near term, price action remains confined to a range, with $60,000 acting as the main support floor.
The Aroon Oscillator sits in positive territory at 42.86, suggesting that recent upward moves are currently outweighing recent lows. This points to mild bullish momentum in the short term, though the signal is not strong enough to indicate a confirmed trend shift.
Bitcoin (BTC) price chart, source: crypto.news Momentum indicators, however, remain weak. The MACD continues to reflect bearish conditions, with the histogram at approximately -124.49 and the MACD line near -236.26, still positioned below the signal line around -111.77. This setup indicates that downside momentum has not fully dissipated despite the recent price recovery.
Overall, Bitcoin is stabilizing after its decline but has yet to establish a convincing bullish reversal. A sustained breakout above the $65,000–$66,000 resistance zone would strengthen the recovery case, while a breakdown below $60,000 would likely reintroduce stronger bearish pressure.
Fed minutes and White House meeting come into focus Macro policy returns to the foreground this week. The Federal Reserve will publish minutes from its July 28–29 meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 19, at 2 p.m. ET. Officials voted 9–3 to maintain the federal funds target range at 3.5%–3.75%, with three members preferring a quarter-point increase.
Markets have since reduced expectations for another rate increase. Futures pricing pointed to roughly a 30% probability of a September hike heading into Monday, according to the Financial Times.
Crypto traders will also watch Washington. As crypto.news reported, Coinbase, Ripple and other crypto and prediction-market executives are expected at an Aug. 19 White House meeting as policymakers continue discussing digital asset regulation.
For Bitcoin, the immediate question is whether Monday’s move can extend beyond the $64,000 region and recover last week’s highs. Until then, BTC remains below its recent range peak while selected altcoins, notably LINK, HYPE and XMR, continue to outperform.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
A critical flaw in Apple's built-in Screen Sharing feature has been actively exploited by hackers to commandeer Macs and use them to mine Monero ($XMR), according to Dutch cybersecurity authorities.
What the Vulnerability Does The flaw, tracked as CVE-2026-65400, It targets Crucially, That makes conventional defences useless:
Any Mac with Screen Sharing enabled and port 5900 open to the internet is at risk. Security firm Huntress estimated
Attacks Confirmed, Patch Available The Netherlands' National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) confirmed the attacks are not theoretical. The agency has not disclosed the number of machines affected or further details on the attackers.
The choice of Monero is deliberate. U.S. officials subsequently re-rated the flaw's severity:
Apple patched the vulnerability on August 6. Users who have not yet applied the update should do so immediately.
Sources:
Bleeping Computer: Hackers exploit macOS Screen Sharing flaw to deploy Monero miner
SC World: macOS screen sharing vulnerability actively exploited for crypto mining
The Hacker News: Apple macOS Screen Sharing Flaw Exploited to Install Monero Miner
According to the Dutch National Cyber Security Center (NCSC-NL), attackers are exploiting a critical authentication vulnerability CVE-2026-65400 in macOS’s screen sharing function to launch attacks on Mac devices exposed to the internet. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 9.8, allowing attackers to bypass authentication and gain root system privileges without valid credentials. NCSC-NL noted it has received multiple reports of active exploitation; affected devices have port 5900 directly accessible from the internet. In all confirmed cases, attackers successfully obtained root access and deployed Monero (XMR) mining software on compromised Macs. Apple recently patched the vulnerability via macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9, and Sonoma 14.8.9. Security Affairs advises users who have enabled screen sharing and not yet updated their systems to upgrade immediately; if an update is temporarily unavailable, they should disable screen sharing to avoid exposing port 5900 to the internet.
Key Takeaways Cybercriminals leveraged a macOS Screen Sharing vulnerability to secure root-level privileges and deploy Monero mining malware on exposed Mac systems The Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre verified active attacks targeting systems with port 5900 accessible online Apple released security patches on August 6 in macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9, and Sonoma 14.8.9 CISA elevated the severity rating to 9.8 critical from its initial 7.1 assessment Traditional mitigation methods like password resets are ineffective; only Apple’s security update resolves the vulnerability Cybercriminals successfully weaponized a security weakness in Apple’s macOS Screen Sharing functionality to commandeer internet-connected Mac computers and deploy them for Monero cryptocurrency mining operations. The Dutch National Cyber Security Centre validated these attacks in a revised security bulletin issued on August 12.
⚠️ALERT: Critical Apple Screen Sharing flaw exploited to hijack Macs and mine Monero.
The Netherlands’ cyber agency confirms that attackers gained full control of internet-exposed Macs through a simple flaw in Apple’s Screen Sharing feature and installed Monero miners.
Apple… pic.twitter.com/g2VZJGGSaS
— Coin Bureau (@coinbureau) August 17, 2026
Across all documented incidents, threat actors successfully acquired root-level system privileges and deployed Monero mining applications on hijacked devices. The Dutch cybersecurity authority declined to specify the total number of compromised Macs or identify potential threat actors.
Apple addressed the security gap, designated as CVE-2026-65400, with patches released on August 6. The remediation was distributed through macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9, and Sonoma 14.8.9.
The vulnerability stems from flawed state management within the Secure Remote Password authentication mechanism employed by macOS Screen Sharing. Cybersecurity firm Huntress discovered that malicious actors could manipulate the system into recognizing an unauthorized connection as pre-authenticated, thereby granting complete elevated access.
Since the exploitation occurs prior to conventional authentication procedures, typical security measures prove ineffective. Resetting Screen Sharing credentials, deactivating VNC authentication, or eliminating user profiles will not prevent unauthorized access.
Thousands of Mac Systems at Risk Huntress security researcher Ryan Dowd conducted a Censys scan that identified tens of thousands of potentially susceptible endpoints. This figure represents internet-exposed Macs, not verified compromises.
The threat level is particularly elevated for cloud-hosted bare-metal Mac infrastructure, such as Mac minis leased from hosting providers. Certain hosting platforms automatically activate Screen Sharing on freshly provisioned machines, creating exposure windows when Apple’s August 6 security updates remain unapplied.
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency originally assigned the vulnerability a 7.1 severity score when Apple distributed the patch. CISA subsequently escalated the rating to 9.8 critical on August 14, acknowledging that exploitation requires neither elevated privileges nor user interaction.
The Case for Monero in Cryptojacking Monero remains a preferred choice for cryptojacking operations. The cryptocurrency supports mining with standard computing hardware, contrasting with Bitcoin, which demands specialized equipment. Its privacy-focused architecture additionally complicates transaction tracing efforts.
Individual machine profitability remains modest. The complete Monero network generates approximately 432 XMR daily, representing roughly $179,000 distributed across the entire mining ecosystem.
Monero was trading between $414 and $415 during reporting, showing gains of approximately 1% to 3.7% across 24 hours and roughly 5% over the preceding week.
The Dutch NCSC verified active exploitation but withheld specifics regarding mining infrastructure, pool addresses, or attacker wallet identifiers. Ongoing security research may illuminate the attack campaign’s scope before Apple’s remediation became available.
Mac users with Screen Sharing functionality enabled should deploy Apple’s latest security patches without delay.
In brief The Netherlands' NCSC warned of active exploitation of a macOS Screen Sharing vulnerability across systems with port 5900 exposed to the internet, where attackers gained root access and installed Monero mining programs. The flaw stems from faulty state management during authentication, letting network attackers log in without valid credentials The cryptojacking campaign—which quietly mines privacy coin Monero on victims' hardware—joins a wave of similar schemes. Attackers have been exploiting a vulnerability in Apple's macOS Screen Sharing feature to seize control of Macs and quietly install cryptocurrency miners, the Netherlands' national cyber agency warned this week.
In an updated advisory, the Dutch National Cyber Security Center, or NCSC, said it received reports of active exploitation across multiple systems that had port 5900, used by Screen Sharing, exposed to the internet.
Myriad: When will OpenAI release GPT-6? Click to make your prediction.In each case, the attackers gained root access, the highest level of control over a machine, and planted a Monero mining program to harness the victim's hardware. Monero is a so-called privacy coin, a type of cryptocurrency that cannot be easily traced, unlike transparent networks such as Bitcoin or Ethereum. The agency flagged that public proof-of-concept code for the flaw is now circulating, lowering the bar for would-be attackers.
The bug, tracked as CVE-2026-65400 and rated 7.1 out of 10 in severity, is an authentication flaw rooted in faulty state management during the login process. It let network-based attackers slip through without valid credentials, accepting authentication attempts that should have been rejected.
Apple has since patched the issue, tightening its validation checks in macOS Sequoia 15.7.9, Sonoma 14.8.9 and Tahoe 26.6.1. Users who haven't updated, particularly anyone with Screen Sharing reachable from the open internet, remain exposed.
Monero has long been the coin of choice for so-called cryptojacking, in which hijacked machines mine crypto for an attacker who pockets the rewards while the victim absorbs the electricity costs and degraded performance. The token's privacy features make the proceeds far harder to trace than Bitcoin.
The campaign is the latest in a steady stream of schemes turning other people's devices into crypto profit.
Just this month, Bitdefender found pirated copies of "The Odyssey" laced with the wallet-draining Lumma Stealer. Decrypt has also reported on malware pushed through fake CAPTCHA pages routed via BNB Chain, the SparkKitty operation that hid wallet-stealing code in mobile apps, malicious "anime girl" wallpapers aimed at Steam gamers, and crypto-stealing code smuggled into a booby-trapped Python library.
The NCSC suggests users apply Apple's updates promptly and avoid leaving Screen Sharing accessible from the internet, which gave attackers their opening in the first place.
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
In brief The Netherlands' NCSC warned of active exploitation of a macOS Screen Sharing vulnerability across systems with port 5900 exposed to the internet, where attackers gained root access and installed Monero mining programs. The flaw stems from faulty state management during authentication, letting network attackers log in without valid credentials The cryptojacking campaign—which quietly mines privacy coin Monero on victims' hardware—joins a wave of similar schemes. Attackers have been exploiting a vulnerability in Apple's macOS Screen Sharing feature to seize control of Macs and quietly install cryptocurrency miners, the Netherlands' national cyber agency warned this week.
In an updated advisory, the Dutch National Cyber Security Center, or NCSC, said it received reports of active exploitation across multiple systems that had port 5900, used by Screen Sharing, exposed to the internet.
Myriad: When will OpenAI release GPT-6? Click to make your prediction.In each case, the attackers gained root access, the highest level of control over a machine, and planted a Monero mining program to harness the victim's hardware. Monero is a so-called privacy coin, a type of cryptocurrency that cannot be easily traced, unlike transparent networks such as Bitcoin or Ethereum. The agency flagged that public proof-of-concept code for the flaw is now circulating, lowering the bar for would-be attackers.
The bug, tracked as CVE-2026-65400 and rated 7.1 out of 10 in severity, is an authentication flaw rooted in faulty state management during the login process. It let network-based attackers slip through without valid credentials, accepting authentication attempts that should have been rejected.
Apple has since patched the issue, tightening its validation checks in macOS Sequoia 15.7.9, Sonoma 14.8.9 and Tahoe 26.6.1. Users who haven't updated, particularly anyone with Screen Sharing reachable from the open internet, remain exposed.
Monero has long been the coin of choice for so-called cryptojacking, in which hijacked machines mine crypto for an attacker who pockets the rewards while the victim absorbs the electricity costs and degraded performance. The token's privacy features make the proceeds far harder to trace than Bitcoin.
The campaign is the latest in a steady stream of schemes turning other people's devices into crypto profit.
Just this month, Bitdefender found pirated copies of "The Odyssey" laced with the wallet-draining Lumma Stealer. Decrypt has also reported on malware pushed through fake CAPTCHA pages routed via BNB Chain, the SparkKitty operation that hid wallet-stealing code in mobile apps, malicious "anime girl" wallpapers aimed at Steam gamers, and crypto-stealing code smuggled into a booby-trapped Python library.
The NCSC suggests users apply Apple's updates promptly and avoid leaving Screen Sharing accessible from the internet, which gave attackers their opening in the first place.
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
Not financial or tax advice. PANews content is strictly educational and informational and is not investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, legal advice, or a solicitation to buy or sell any digital asset, security, or financial product. Do your own research and consult qualified advisers.
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Attackers have been taking over Macs through a flaw in Apple's screen sharing feature and using them to mine Monero, the Netherlands' National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) recently said in an updated advisory.
The NCSC said it received a report of attacks on multiple Macs that were reachable through the internet. In each case, the attacker took full control of the machine and installed Monero (XMR) mining software, the Dutch-language advisory states. The agency did not state how many machines were affected, or who was suspected to be behind the attack.
Apple patched the flaw on Aug. 6 in macOS Tahoe 26.6.1, Sequoia 15.7.9 and Sonoma 14.8.9. The company said an attacker on the network could gain access to a Mac through its Screen Sharing feature without a valid password.
Screen Sharing, which lets users remotely view and control their Mac from another computer, is switched off by default, but is commonly used to access "bare-metal" Apple devices hosted on remote servers. Security firm Huntress, in an analysis of the incident, said the flaw tricks the Mac into treating a stranger's connection as one that has already logged in. Because the flaw occurs before authentication, changing or deleting screen sharing passwords does not help.
"Anybody who leverages Apple's Screen Sharing functionality on any supported macOS version needs to apply the most recent security updates immediately," Huntress researcher Ryan Dowd wrote. Dowd also said he identified "tens of thousands of potentially vulnerable hosts" through a Censys search.
Federal cybersecurity agency CISA initially rated the flaw 7.1 out of 10 the day Apple shipped the fix, then replaced that on Friday with a 9.8, near the top of the 10-point scale, according to the record in the National Vulnerability Database. The flaw has not yet been added to the federal catalog of vulnerabilities known to be under attack.
Why Monero? Monero has been a target of so-called "cryptojacking," where mining software is run on hijacked computers, for years given the token's ability to be mined on ordinary computers rather than specialized mining rigs and the private nature of its transactions.
The payoff per machine is thin, however. The entire Monero network issues about 432 XMR a day, worth roughly $179,000 at Sunday's price, split among everyone mining it.
XMR traded at $415.82 on Sunday, up about 3.7% over the past 24 hours, according to The Block's Monero Price page.
Hijacked computing power has surfaced elsewhere this year. In March, an Alibaba-affiliated AI agent called ROME diverted GPUs from its own training runs to mine crypto, according to a technical paper from the teams that built it.
Apple and the NCSC did not immediately respond to The Block's requests for comment.
Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.
Monero reached a record $797.73 on Jan. 14, 2026, despite major XMR delistings across Binance and OKX.
Binance ended XMR spot trading in February 2024, while Kraken halted EEA trading later that October.
EU rules taking effect July 10, 2027 target anonymity-enhancing coins but do not ban private ownership.
Patel’s chart marks $400 as an initial strength level, with $180-$120 identified as long-term support.
Monero has emerged as a test of whether repeated centralized-exchange delistings can permanently weaken a cryptocurrency’s long-term market structure. An Aug. 15 chart from analyst Crypto Patel tracks XMR from about $0.22 in January 2015 to nearly $799 in January 2026.
CoinGecko separately records Monero’s all-time low at $0.2162 and its record high at $797.73 on Jan. 14, 2026. That eleven-year move came despite shrinking access on several major exchanges, creating an unusual divide between regulatory pressure and price performance.
Monero Defies Delistings as $799 Record Stays in Focus
The delisting cycle intensified during 2024 as large centralized platforms reduced support for the privacy-focused asset. OKX removed several XMR spot pairs in January, followed by Binance ending all spot trading on Feb. 20, 2024.
Binance said new regulatory requirements were among the factors considered when reviewing listed assets. Kraken later stopped XMR trading and deposits for European Economic Area customers on Oct. 31, 2024, citing regulatory changes.
MONERO (XMR): THE MOST DELISTED COIN IN CRYPTO IS BACK ABOVE $800$XMR is going up while most altcoins sit near their all-time lows.
THE DELISTING WAVE
✅ Binance: Removed #XMR in Feb 2024 (price dropped 30% in one day)
✅ Kraken: removed for Ireland and Belgium, balances… pic.twitter.com/mYAY06629t
— Crypto Patel (@CryptoPatel) August 15, 2026
Kraken subsequently converted remaining customer balances to Bitcoin after its withdrawal deadline expired. Together, those decisions reduced convenient access, although they did not remove the network or eliminate secondary trading channels.
The regulatory friction comes directly from Monero’s privacy architecture. Stealth addresses, ring signatures and Ring Confidential Transactions hide recipients, senders and transaction amounts by default.
Those protections conflict with compliance systems that increasingly demand identifiable transaction information. The Financial Action Task Force’s Travel Rule requires greater transparency around virtual-asset transfers.
Europe is also tightening restrictions. Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 prohibits crypto-asset service providers from maintaining accounts supporting anonymisation or increased transaction obfuscation, including anonymity-enhancing coins.
The regulation applies from July 10, 2027. However, it does not impose a blanket prohibition on private ownership or self-hosted wallets beyond provider control.
That distinction leaves alternative trading routes open. Bitcoin-Monero atomic swaps and Tor-based peer-to-peer exchange Haveno allow users to transact without relying on traditional centralized order books.
XMR Bull Flag Keeps January Record in View
Patel’s monthly chart places the post-record decline inside a large bull-flag structure rather than treating it as a completed long-term breakdown. The chart identifies roughly $400 as an initial strength level and marks $180-$120 as broader long-term support.
It also displays a $2,000-$3,000 breakout objective, although those figures are chart-based technical projections rather than established market outcomes. The more immediate reference remains the $797.73 January record.
Source: X
The market structure now depends on a clear trade-off. Centralized venues provide deeper liquidity, simpler fiat access and more efficient price discovery, while delistings can widen spreads.
Even so, CoinGecko data shows Monero still trades across venues including KuCoin, Kraken and MEXC. That continuing activity explains why regulatory exclusion has not translated into market disappearance.
The January peak therefore remains important because it followed, rather than preceded, the major 2024 delisting wave. For traders, the chart measures whether reduced exchange access has changed demand enough to break Monero’s broader structure.
Reykjavik, Iceland, 14th August 2026, ChainwireBy Chainwire
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Reykjavik, Iceland, August 14th, 2026, Chainwire
More than $700 million in Monero (XMR) transaction volume has been routed through Hyperliquid's onchain orderbook since January 2026, according to figures published today by Wagyu.xyz, the cross-chain swap platform that operates the route.
The milestone marks one of the larger concentrations of privacy-asset flow to reach a decentralized orderbook venue, and reflects a broader shift in where Monero liquidity is being sourced following a contraction in centralized listings.
Where XMR Liquidity Went
Spot access to Monero has narrowed materially across regulated venues in recent years, with major exchanges removing XMR pairs or restricting access in specific jurisdictions. Reported network activity for the asset has not declined correspondingly, indicating that end-user demand persisted while regulated distribution contracted.
That demand has increasingly been served by instant-swap intermediaries operating a principal model, holding inventory and quoting a single all-in rate. Independent analysis has placed effective all-in transaction costs in that segment at approximately 3% to 4%, against advertised rates frequently below 1%. Because such venues publish no orderbook, quoted rates cannot readily be benchmarked against a reference market.
Hyperliquid As The Execution Venue
The volume reported today executes against Hyperliquid's onchain orderbook, where professional market makers compete on price, rather than against operator-held inventory. Under this structure the transaction spread is set by market conditions rather than unilaterally by an intermediary.
The flow represents incremental order volume for the Hyperliquid ecosystem. Earlier reporting documented more than $20 million in new trading volume directed to the venue within the first two weeks of the route's operation, a figure that has scaled alongside cumulative swap volume since.
Settlement delivers native XMR on the Monero blockchain, with XMR1, a wrapped representation on HyperCore, used during the transaction lifecycle. Reported median settlement is approximately 5.5 minutes, with 90th-percentile settlement at 13.2 minutes.
Screening Applied Before Execution
The route applies transaction screening prior to swap execution rather than following deposit acceptance. Deposits that do not pass screening are returned to the originating address.
Under post-settlement review models common in the segment, an estimated 2% to 5% of transactions are flagged after the operator has taken custody, at which point users of services marketed as requiring no identity verification are commonly asked to provide documentation as a condition of fund recovery. Resolution timelines in such cases are not contractually defined. The published compliance policy for the route states that KYC documentation is not requested and that restrictions apply to assets only pursuant to a valid court order from a duly authorized authority of competent jurisdiction.
Developer Access
A public API covering asset discovery, quoting, order creation and order tracking is now generally available, allowing third parties to route XMR order flow to the same venue under their own interfaces and pricing. The operator states that a number of independent swap services now run on this infrastructure, and that Wagyu.xyz is currently the largest venue for Monero transaction volume. Third-party services apply independent margin to the routed rate, which is not applied to orders submitted directly.
About Wagyu.xyz
Wagyu.xyz is a cross-chain swap and bridge platform providing access to native Monero without identity verification requirements. Launched in January 2026, it routes orders through Hyperliquid's onchain orderbook and applies compliance screening prior to execution, returning any deposits that do not pass to the originating address. A public API supports third-party integration and independent swap service operation. The platform has processed more than $700 million in cumulative volume since launch and is headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland.
XMR flipped ADA and is now the 16th-biggest cryptocurrency.
It is quite challenging to spot a cryptocurrency whose price has jumped by double digits over the past seven days, with Monero (XMR) among the few exceptions.
Following the green wave, many market observers have become optimistic, expecting additional gains.
Just the Beginning? XMR has crossed $400, currently trading at around $404 (according to CoinGecko), representing a 13% weekly increase. Its market capitalization has exceeded $7.5 billion, making it the 16th-largest cryptocurrency after overtaking Cardano’s ADA.
XMR Price, Source: CoinGecko The exact catalyst for the resurgence remains rather unclear, yet certain analysts spotted the formation of bullish patterns that could support a more sustainable uptrend. Several days ago, X user The Moon Show claimed that XMR might be carving out a massive cup-and-handle structure.
“I’m watching for a clean handle followed by a breakout above $430. If that happens, things could move very fast,” they said.
For their part, Lucky (an X user with almost two million followers) described the move north as a “special breakout from a special privacy gem.” The analyst argued that it has entered the bullish trend, projecting a pump to almost $600.
Crypto With Gopal appears to be the biggest optimist. He opined that XMR has formed a massive triangle pattern, with the price consolidating near $400 after a strong recovery, as rising support and descending resistance squeeze momentum.
“Bulls are holding the range as a major breakout setup develops. A clean breakout above the upper trendline could trigger a major expansion move toward the $1,000 target,” he forecasted.
The Bearish Signals It is worth mentioning that, based on two important factors, XMR’s rally could be abruptly replaced by a short-term pullback. The first is the asset’s Relative Strength Index (RSI), which measures the speed and magnitude of recent price changes to give traders an idea about possible trend reversals.
It ranges from 0 to 100, where anything above 70 means that the coin has entered overbought territory and could be due for a correction. In contrast, ratios below 30 are typically interpreted as buying opportunities. As of now, the RSI stands at around 77.
XMR RSI, Source: RSI Hunter The second element is XMR’s exchange netflow. In the past few months, inflows have dominated outflows, signaling that investors have abandoned self-custody and flocked to centralized platforms. This, in turn, increases immediate selling pressure.
Monero (XMR) extends its gains, trading above $397 on Thursday after finding support around the key support zone the previous day. Strengthening derivatives metrics and a constructive technical outlook suggest momentum is building, hinting at a further rally for XMR.
Derivatives data backs bullish sentimentDerivatives data shows bullish sentiment among Monero traders. CoinGlass’ long-to-short ratio for XMR reads 1.77 on Thursday, the highest level over a month. A ratio above one indicates bullish sentiment, as traders are betting the asset price will rise.
XMR long-to-short ratio chart. Source: CoinglassCoinGlass’ Open Interest (OI) for Monero across exchanges has been surging since early August, with outstanding contracts reaching 450.35K XMR coins on Thursday. The increase in OI alongside rising prices suggests that new long positions are entering the market, signaling a potential upside.
XMR open interest chart. Source: CoinglassIn addition, CoinGlass’ funding rates metric for XMR flipped positive on August 7, steadily rising to 0.010% on Thursday. This positive rate indicates that long traders are paying shorts and reflects a bullish bias.
XMR funding rates chart. Source: CoinglassXMR technical outlook: Key support holds strongMonero price trades at $397.68, extending its advance above the key Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs), with the 50-day EMA at $356.17, the 100-day EMA at $353.92 and the 200-day EMA at $356.97 all providing underlying demand.
XMR price also sits comfortably over the rising trendline support near $354.18 and the intermediate horizontal floor around $375.20, keeping the near-term bias bullish. Momentum remains constructive, as the Relative Strength Index (RSI) holds in the mid-60s, while Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) stays in positive territory with the line above zero and the recent histogram expansion hinting at sustained upside pressure, even as conditions approach overbought territory.
On the downside, initial support is seen at the horizontal level near $375.20 ahead of a dense structural cluster formed by the 50-day, 100-day and 200-day EMAs between roughly $353.92 and $356.97, reinforced by the rising trendline break price at $354.18; a daily close below this band would signal waning bullish control and open room toward the deeper horizontal base at $285.11.
On the topside, the next notable hurdle is the horizontal resistance at $416.45, and a decisive break above this barrier would likely extend the uptrend and invite a fresh leg higher as long as price continues to hold above the EMA cluster and trend support.
XMR/USDT daily chart(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool. Know more.)
Someone really likes Monero right now. A newly created wallet dropped 3.56 million USDC onto Hyperliquid, the decentralized perpetual exchange, and immediately opened a leveraged long position on 36,000 XMR tokens. At entry prices hovering between $395 and $400, the notional value of the trade clocks in at roughly $14.33 million.
The trader then set a take-profit ladder between $475 and $516, suggesting they’re expecting XMR to rally another 20% to 30% from current levels.
Breaking down the trade The position uses approximately 4x leverage, meaning the trader’s $3.56 million in deposited collateral is controlling a position worth more than four times that amount.
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On-chain analytics from Lookonchain first flagged the whale activity on August 10, 2026. The wallet in question appears to have been created specifically for this trade, which is a common pattern among large traders looking to keep their broader portfolio activity under wraps.
XMR has gained nearly 10% over the past week, trading in a range between $393 and $402 after breaking through a descending trendline that had been capping price action.
Hyperliquid is a decentralized exchange specializing in perpetual futures that operates on its own Layer-1 blockchain to facilitate on-chain order books and leveraged trading. Perpetual futures allow traders to bet on price movements without actually buying the underlying asset — you’re trading a synthetic contract that tracks XMR’s price, settled in stablecoins, with leverage available to amplify exposure.
This distinction matters for Monero in particular. XMR has been delisted from several major centralized exchanges over the years due to regulatory concerns around its privacy features, making it harder to trade in traditional spot markets. Perpetual futures on platforms like Hyperliquid offer an alternative route for traders who want exposure without navigating the shrinking list of venues that still support direct XMR trading.
A pattern of whale interest This isn’t the first time a large trader has taken a sizable XMR position on Hyperliquid. Earlier in 2026, a similar whale trade surfaced involving a $2.27 million USDC deposit used to open a 2x leveraged long on Monero. The current trade is significantly larger in both collateral and leverage.
The take-profit range of $475 to $516 would represent a roughly 19% to 29% move from the entry zone. At 4x leverage, a 25% adverse move would wipe out the collateral entirely without intervention.
With spot market access becoming increasingly restricted, decentralized perpetual exchanges are absorbing a growing share of XMR volume. That means XMR’s price discovery is happening less on order books where actual coins change hands and more on synthetic markets where stablecoins serve as the medium of exchange. Hyperliquid, which operates without traditional KYC requirements for most users, is a natural landing spot for that flow.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Wallets linked to crypto payment processor Coinsbuy were reportedly drained of more than $7.9 million across Ethereum and TRON around 13:00 UTC on Aug. 9, according to blockchain investigator Specter and follow up monitoring from security firms.
Summary
Wallets linked to Coinsbuy reportedly lost $7.9 million across Ethereum and TRON during Sunday’s drain. PeckShield traced stolen funds through ChangeNOW, FixedFloat and BingX after Specter first flagged the drain. ChangeNOW reportedly froze a six figure amount while attackers converted part of proceeds into Monero. Coinsbuy temporarily paused deposits and withdrawals after the incident before services reportedly resumed hours later. GoPlus said activity resembled compromised hot wallet keys or administrator access, though unconfirmed by Coinsbuy. The attacker then began routing part of the stolen assets through exchanges and toward Monero, a privacy focused cryptocurrency.
PeckShield said the wallets “likely lost” about $7.9 million and traced part of the proceeds through ChangeNOW, FixedFloat and BingX. CertiK’s security feed independently relayed the same estimated loss and exchange routes. The precise attack vector has not been established publicly.
Coinsbuy drain spread across Ethereum and TRON Specter identified two Ethereum addresses and one TRON address as theft destinations. The cross network movement suggests the attacker obtained access capable of moving assets on more than one chain, but that does not establish whether private keys, administrator credentials or another part of Coinsbuy’s infrastructure was compromised.
JUST IN: Coinsbuy wallet lose $7.9 million in cross-chain incident
The event affected assets on TRON and Ethereum according to reports pic.twitter.com/L0eZSH05IN
— crypto.news (@cryptodotnews) August 10, 2026 GoPlus Security said the activity was “consistent with hot wallet private key or administrator privilege theft.” That remains an assessment, not a confirmed root cause. Coinsbuy has not published a technical postmortem in the public documentation reviewed on Aug. 10. Its latest visible release notes are dated July 31.
Coinsbuy describes itself as a business focused crypto payment service offering payment processing, wallet infrastructure and digital asset management. Its official site also advertises crypto payment processing and wallet services for businesses.
Stolen funds moved through exchanges toward Monero After the drain, the attacker began sending stolen assets through exchange services. Specter said the funds were being converted toward Monero, while PeckShield identified ChangeNOW, FixedFloat and BingX among platforms receiving portions of the proceeds.
Coinsbuy $7.9M drain sends funds through 3 exchanges, source: PeckShield Specter also said ChangeNOW helped freeze a six figure amount before it could move further. ChangeNOW had not issued a separate public statement confirming the exact frozen sum in sources reviewed for this story, so the amount remains attributed to the investigator.
The laundering route resembles patterns seen in other major crypto thefts. In an earlier recovery case, investigators helped freeze about $1.2 million tied to Bo Shen’s stolen assets after funds passed through services including ChangeNOW. Separately, a January wallet theft involved attackers converting stolen Bitcoin and Litecoin into Monero.
Deposits and withdrawals reportedly resumed Coinsbuy paused deposits and withdrawals after the incident and later restored them, according to Specter’s update and reports citing the investigator. No separate incident notice confirming the timeline was visible in Coinsbuy’s public release notes at the time of review.
It also remains unclear from public disclosures whether the reported $7.9 million consisted entirely of Coinsbuy owned assets, client funds or a combination of both. No customer loss breakdown or reimbursement plan was visible in the company materials reviewed on Aug. 10.
That distinction matters because service restoration does not establish that the investigation is complete or that the full loss has been recovered. The currently verified public picture remains limited to the reported drain, identified theft addresses, laundering activity and a partial freeze.
The case adds to a busy security year. TRM Labs recorded 207 hacks and about $972 million stolen during the first half of 2026, according to data cited in recent industry loss coverage. Infrastructure and operational failures accounted for most of the value lost during that period.
What happens next The next material update would be a Coinsbuy incident report identifying the attack vector, affected assets, final loss and any customer exposure. Confirmation from ChangeNOW or the other exchanges could also clarify how much was frozen and whether additional funds remain recoverable.
For now, claims about how the attacker obtained access should remain qualified. Security researchers are continuing to trace the listed Ethereum and TRON addresses, but movement into Monero can make later tracing harder once funds leave transparent blockchains.
