Winklevoss Twins File for Zcash ETF Set to Trade as WINK

The Winklevoss twins, Cameron and Tyler, are expanding their crypto ambitions with a new spot Zcash exchange-traded fund (ETF). The twins filed an S-1 registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday, outlining plans for the Winklevoss Zcash ETF. This fund would track the price of Zcash (ZEC) and allow investors to gain exposure through traditional brokerage accounts, bypassing the need to buy and store the token directly.

The ETF, set to trade on Nasdaq under the ticker WINK, would charge a 0.25% sponsor fee. The twins' crypto exchange, Gemini, would serve as the custodian, holding the ZEC in cold storage. Winklevoss Capital Fund has expressed interest in purchasing up to $100 million of shares, though the filing notes this is a non-binding commitment.

The filing also highlights the involvement of Cypherpunk Technologies, a Winklevoss-backed Zcash treasury company, as the fund's Zcash Ecosystem Partner. This entity will advise on protocol matters and coinholder voting. The move comes as Zcash experiences a resurgence, with the privacy coin gaining prominence due to rising concerns over financial surveillance and institutional packaging.

Despite the optimism, the filing acknowledges significant risks, including ZEC's extreme volatility and the unique vulnerabilities of privacy coins. It specifically mentions a soundness bug found earlier this year in Zcash's Orchard shielded pool, which briefly caused a roughly 50% drop in ZEC's value before being patched with the Ironwood upgrade. The SEC must still approve the filing before trading can commence, underscoring the speculative nature of the investment given ZEC's dramatic 2,000% surge over the past year.