Privacy token Zcash surged 23% over the past 24 hours, leading a broader rally in Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies during early Asian trading on September 17, as US equity futures rebounded following the Federal Reserve's first rate hike since 2023. ZEC was trading near $1,369, while Bitcoin edged up less than 1% to approximately $76,258.

Among other major tokens, Solana gained nearly 3% to just under $100, while BNB and Hyperliquid's HYPE token both rose more than 2%. Ethereum, Ripple, and Dogecoin advanced between 1% and 2%.

The Zcash rally aligns with recent commentary from Matt Huang, co-founder of prominent crypto investment firm Paradigm. Huang took to social media to discuss Zcash's role as a privacy complement to Bitcoin, while disclosing that his firm holds ZEC tokens.

Zcash enables users to send funds without revealing the sender, recipient, or transaction amount. Its holders recently supported a proposal to accelerate payment speeds while maintaining a scheduled reduction in new coin issuance, a feature similar to Bitcoin's design. Huang described Zcash as "Bitcoin's privacy complement," endorsing continued funding for its developers while advocating that token holder votes be integrated with other network change decisions.

The broader crypto market rebound follows the Fed's decision to raise its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75% to 4%. Rate hikes typically increase borrowing costs, potentially reducing capital available for speculative investments while making interest-bearing cash and government debt more attractive relative to non-yielding assets like Bitcoin.

However, if investor concerns about further rate increases diminish, anticipated hikes can still coincide with rising crypto prices. The Fed's median projections indicate a policy rate of 4.1% by the end of both 2026 and 2027, consistent with one additional 25-basis-point hike this year.

Jeff Ko, chief analyst at ViaBTC, noted in an email that the September 16 hike was largely priced in by the market. "The Fed is signaling it does not currently envisage an aggressive tightening cycle, and the market appears reassured by its efforts to curb inflation," Ko wrote.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.6%, Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.7%, and Asian equities gained 0.3%. The two-year US Treasury yield, which is sensitive to Fed policy expectations, fell 2 basis points to 4.71%, after reaching its highest level since 2024 in the previous trading session.