Another Zcash ETF Is Coming: Winklevoss Twins File for 'WINK'

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have taken a formal step toward launching a spot Zcash exchange-traded fund by filing an S-1 registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The trust would hold ZEC directly and aims to let investors gain exposure to the private-transfer cryptocurrency through standard brokerage accounts, rather than by buying and storing tokens themselves. The proposed ETF would list on Nasdaq under the ticker WINK and carry a 0.25% sponsor fee.

The filing identifies Gemini, the Winklevoss twins' crypto exchange, as the custodian that would hold the trust's ZEC in cold storage. Winklevoss Capital Fund has signaled non-binding interest in purchasing up to $100 million of shares in the offering. The trust also designates Cypherpunk Technologies, a company backed by the twins and tied to the Zcash treasury, as its "Zcash Ecosystem Partner" to provide advice on protocol matters and coinholder voting.

The move comes amid a notable resurgence for Zcash. Once largely excluded from institutional products, ZEC has been repackaged into exchange-traded vehicles in recent months: Grayscale converted its Zcash Trust into a spot ETF in August and later announced a share split, while Europe saw its first Zcash ETP from 21Shares. ZEC's price has risen sharply over the past year, a rally the filing states has exceeded 2,000%.

The S-1 also highlights risks specific to ZEC and privacy coins more broadly, including high volatility and technical vulnerabilities. The filing cites a soundness bug discovered earlier this year in Zcash's Orchard shielded pool that briefly pushed the token down roughly 50% before the network fixed the issue with the Ironwood upgrade. The document notes that SEC approval is still required before the fund can begin trading.