Midnight Networks NIGHT token rose almost 200% within 24 hours after the launch on December 9, becoming the most trending asset on CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap.
The token reached a market value of over $1.2 billion and recorded more than $320 million in trading volume during its first full day.
Mega bullish season for privacy coins?
Midnight is architecturally designed as a “partner chain” or sidechain to Cardano. The first token and main ledger are issued on Cardano (as a Cardano Native Asset).
The hyped market launch places Midnight Network at the center of a larger shift in the market. Privacy coins have seen an increase since October.
Recently, the rise has been driven by regulatory pressure in Europe, stricter monitoring rules, and renewed interest in zero-knowledge technology.
Zcash started the trend with a tenfold increase between October and mid-November. The rise coincided with the EU approving rules that will prevent exchanges from listing privacy coins starting in 2027.
Traders moved over to Dash, Railgun, Decred, and Monero as the sector gained momentum, lifting volumes for privacy tokens up to $3 billion at its peak.
Nevertheless, the upturn has been characterized by tension. Analysts warn that increased regulatory scrutiny could force privacy activity away from regulated platforms.
At the same time, controversies around the EU's monitoring measures and the proposed Chat Control directive have strengthened demand for technologies that safeguard confidentiality.
Against this backdrop, Midnight's launch came at a perfect time. The project positions itself as a privacy-oriented network based on zero-knowledge proofs and a dual-token model.
NIGHT serves as the main asset, while DUST is used to fund private transactions. The model provides selective transparency, allowing data to be visible only when required.
This structure aligns with the market's rotation towards privacy infrastructure rather than just simple anonymity tools. It also reflects growing concerns around wallet tracking, identity verification requirements, and the future of personal data in digital finance.
The crypto privacy narrative is taking off
Trading interest reflected this narrative. NIGHT rose from around $0.039 to over $0.085 before falling back slightly. The circulating supply reached 16.6 billion tokens, and investors viewed the launch as an entry point to the next phase for privacy technology.
Still, the privacy sector remains volatile. Zcash fell back by over 40% after the peak in November, while Dash's breakout in early December lost momentum.
Analysts still expect rotation among leading projects as regulations tighten and new privacy-focused projects emerge.
Currently, Midnight has captured the strongest launch momentum among all new tokens this quarter. The rise illustrates how quickly capital flows into privacy infrastructure as the regulatory environment becomes stricter.
The next test will be whether demand remains high as the initial hype fades and the market shifts focus from narrative to use.
