Privacy coins are in an interesting class. On one hand they serve a very vital "need" for the transaction that many people make. Many people got into crypto currencies early on for this very reason. On the other hand they are the coins that are the biggest threat to governments, especially law enforcement. You might even say these are two sides to the same coin (pun intended).

My guess in the long run many governments will outlaw privacy coins. Block chain technology is just too big and important for countries to ban (or regulate it into uselessness) them all together. So governments will look to regulate these things and the easy way to strike a middle ground is to ban the coins that most easily could be used for things that governments tend not to like. I can see Monero as public enemy number one.

When anything looks like it will be banned, especially things that can be used for illegal purposes, the first thing you will see is a massive interest in acquiring these things. So privacy coins in the short run should be an excellent investment. In the long run it will scare out the people who were just in it for speculation, so in the long run the prices will probably plummet.

That being said, I do believe that the world will have a definite place for the "best in class" when it comes to privacy coins. If people are using these for things that could get them in a lot of trouble, second best simply won't do!

If ZEN turns out to be the best in class it could not only have huge short term potential but excellent long term potential as well. The only question is, will it be that best in the class of security coins. Because if you plan to hodl long term, that is what is going to matter. IMHO

Almost forgot, Great Post!