The native token of Layer 1 blockchain Sui, SUI, has increased by more than 14% in the past 24 hours, significantly outperforming Bitcoin. and ether as traders seized on speculation that layer-one blockchains might one day support privacy-preserving transactions.
The move stands out in an otherwise depressed market. Bitcoin is up about 1% over the same period, while ether is up about 1.2%, making SUI the strongest large-cap performer on the day. This divergence points to coin-specific catalysts rather than broader risk appetite moves.
Research-led gathering
Sui’s backlash may stem from research, not product launches. A recent paper co-authored by Mysten Labs, the core creator and developer of the Sui blockchain, outlines how modern blockchains can incorporate privacy features without fully adopting traditional privacy coin designs.
The paper is structured as a systematization of knowledge (an academic survey of existing work), proposing a formal framework for comparing privacy models across blockchains, dividing privacy into different levels, from basic confidentiality hiding transaction amounts, to k-anonymity and full anonymity, gradually obscuring the identities of senders and receivers, rather than proposing a single new protocol.
It places Sui firmly within the account-based model alongside Ethereum and Solana, and explores how such systems can use cryptographic primitives such as homomorphic encryption and zero-knowledge proofs to achieve confidential balances, limited anonymity sets, or unlinkability between senders and receivers.
Crucially, this article highlights the trade-offs. Strong privacy guarantees tend to increase computational overhead, complicate support for some clients designed to operate in resource-scarce environments, and raise regulatory issues.
Moving to digital cash
Throughout 2025, investors will increasingly look for “countercyclical value.” Privacy coins like Zcash and Monero significantly outperformed the broader cryptocurrency market in the second half of 2025, even as Bitcoin and Ethereum struggled amid macro pressures and a stronger U.S. dollar.
Analysts see the move as a rotation toward digital cash, assets designed for use rather than yield, where zero-knowledge proofs enable confidentiality without sacrificing settlement speed or selective compliance. The rally is being interpreted more as a signal that the need for financial privacy is re-emerging as a core theme in the market rather than excessive speculation.
While the paper does not propose a timetable for launching a blockchain privacy token or propose new technologies, investors hope it is a sign of the future.
