Grayscale buys WSJ ad blitz for Zcash ETF as investors pull funds out

Grayscale launched a national ad campaign for its Zcash ETF even as investors pull money out. A rival fund that intends to charge one-tenth of its 2.5% fee is also currently awaiting approval.

Grayscale bought a Wall Street Journal print wrap and pledged $1 million to the Zcash ecosystem through its new “Zcash Invest” education platform. 

Why is Grayscale spending money on ads while its Zcash ETF is losing assets?

Grayscale announced a national ad campaign for its Zcash ETF on Tuesday. Grayscale calls the new campaign “Zcash Invest,” an education hub with a website, a social media account at @ZcashInvest, and a campaign titled “Zcash: The Next Era of Crypto.” 

The company said the rollout starts with a Wall Street Journal wrap and a new national ad, then spreads to print, outdoor ads, streaming, digital, and social media. The ads feature a zebra, a nod to the Zcash community’s mascot.

Grayscale said it will put all the sponsor fees it collects from ZCSH in its first year as an ETF toward Zcash network development, marketing, and education. 

The company also promised $1 million to nonprofits. So far, $400,000 has gone out as four $100,000 grants to the Zcash Foundation, Pretty Good Policy for Zcash, Shielded Labs, and Project Tachyon.

Notably, ZCSH, which converted from a trust and began trading on NYSE Arca on August 25, 2026, has been losing money. The fund lost roughly $10.99 million on November 5, which is regarded as the largest single-day withdrawal among U.S. altcoin ETFs that session, leaving it near $724.2 million in net assets. 

Grayscale’s own fund page says that the fund has about $675.7 million under management as of November.

What fund intends to compete with the Zcash ETF?

Early in October, Winklevoss Asset Services filed a preliminary S-1 with the SEC requesting approval to start a spot Zcash ETF that would trade under the ticker “WINK.”

The company is proposing a 0.25% annual sponsor fee, which is just one-tenth of Grayscale’s 2.5% charge. The fund would hold ZEC directly with Gemini Trust Company as custodian and plans to list on Nasdaq. 

Winklevoss Capital Fund has shown interest in buying up to $100 million of shares; however, it has not committed to anything.

Grayscale used the same pattern as the Zcash invest campaign back in 2019 when it bankrolled “Drop Gold,” a multi-million-dollar campaign making the case for Bitcoin over gold. That campaign was designed to steer money toward its Bitcoin trust.

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