SKN | Leap Therapeutics Skyrockets 300% After $50M Winklevoss-Backed Bet on Zcash Pays Off

3 Key Points

• Leap Therapeutics (LPTX) surged 369% after revealing a $50 million Zcash purchase, backed by a $58.9 million raise led by Winklevoss Capital.

• Zcash (ZEC) has more than doubled since the company accumulated tokens at an average of $245.37, now trading above $523.

• The firm is rebranding to Cypherpunk Technologies (CYPH) as it pivots from oncology biotech to digital asset treasury operations centered on privacy-focused crypto.

Leap Therapeutics (NASDAQ: LPTX), a former oncology biotech firm, stunned markets Wednesday as its stock soared 369% following confirmation of a massive bet on Zcash (ZEC), one of the few digital assets outperforming in recent weeks. The move marks the company’s most dramatic step in its transition into a digital asset treasury business  a shift financed by a $58.9 million funding round led by Winklevoss Capital earlier this month.

The company disclosed it purchased $50 million worth of Zcash at an average price of $245.37, a position that has since ballooned in value as ZEC surged more than 100%, including a 12.2% jump in the past 24 hours to trade around $523. The profitable trade triggered renewed investor enthusiasm, driving LPTX shares to record levels.

Beginning Thursday, the company will officially rebrand as Cypherpunk Technologies and start trading under its new ticker symbol CYPH, reinforcing its strategic pivot away from biotech and toward crypto-focused financial operations.

A High-Conviction Bet in a Cooling Digital Treasury Market

Digital asset treasury companies  businesses that raise capital through equity and debt to accumulate crypto  surged in popularity throughout 2025, following a blueprint pioneered by Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR). But enthusiasm cooled sharply in recent months as many of these firms watched their share prices fall below the net asset value (NAV) of their digital asset holdings, raising concerns about sustainability.

Leap/Cypherpunk bucks that trend with one of the strongest early returns yet seen in the sector.

“The recent weak performance of digital asset treasury companies stems from PIPEs dominated by short-term, mercenary capital,” said Will McEvoy, Cypherpunk’s chief investment officer. “We’ve taken a different path by building a syndicate of value-aligned investors who believe in the long-term importance of Zcash and privacy.”

The choice of Zcash  rather than Bitcoin, Ether, or Solana, which dominate most corporate treasuries  stands out sharply. ZEC is one of the few cryptocurrencies to rally despite broader market pressure, driven by renewed interest in privacy-preserving financial tools and growing concern over surveillance-heavy digital payment systems.

Why Zcash, and Why Now?

Zcash’s core value proposition is robust, cryptographic privacy through zero-knowledge proofs  an attribute that sharply differentiates it from Bitcoin, which offers pseudonymity but transparent transaction flows.

In an era of intensifying regulatory visibility, global financial surveillance, and government-backed stablecoin frameworks, Cypherpunk executives cast ZEC as both a technological hedge and a political statement.

“Zcash is a strategic asset for a world moving toward surveillance-driven financial infrastructure,” McEvoy said. The firm highlighted increasing geopolitical tensions, the rise of CBDCs, and expanding regulatory monitoring as catalysts for ZEC’s growing investor appeal.

This positioning resonates with investors worried about privacy erosion  and may explain the outsized response in LPTX/CYPH shares compared with other digital treasury peers.

Market Implications: A Turning Point or One-Off Outlier?

The explosive reaction suggests that investors remain hungry for high-conviction, narrative-driven crypto treasury plays, especially those diverging from the crowded Bitcoin allocation space. The profitable timing also adds credibility at a moment when the entire sector is battling concerns over sustainability, NAV discounts, and overleveraged balance sheets.

Still, the pivot is not without risk. Zcash remains a niche asset with lower liquidity and higher volatility than majors. Its regulatory treatment  particularly around privacy features  remains subject to ongoing global scrutiny.

Yet for now, Cypherpunk Technologies has delivered one of 2025’s most dramatic corporate crypto wins.

With a booming balance sheet, a resonant privacy narrative, and a fresh ticker symbol arriving Thursday, the company is positioning itself as a bold, differentiated entrant in the increasingly competitive digital treasury arena.