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Bitcoin Updates: The Quantum Era Challenges the Boundaries of Decentralized Consensus

Bitcoin Updates: The Quantum Era Challenges the Boundaries of Decentralized Consensus

Bitget-RWA2025/11/24 14:26
By:Bitget-RWA

- Quantum computers threaten Bitcoin not by breaking cryptography but by destabilizing its decentralized governance model, requiring urgent post-quantum upgrades. - Bitcoin Cash pioneers Quantumroot, a low-cost PQC solution enabling 800-input transactions, outperforming Ethereum-based alternatives in scalability and privacy. - 25% of Bitcoin's value resides in quantum-vulnerable addresses, with "harvest now, break later" attacks amplifying risks as Q-Day approaches within 5-40 years. - NIST's lattice-based

Quantum computing is set to transform

not by directly cracking its cryptography, but by putting pressure on the political and organizational frameworks that guide its development. As progress in quantum technology accelerates, the crypto world faces a pivotal decision: how to shift to post-quantum cryptography while preserving the decentralized agreement that forms the backbone of Bitcoin’s security. The push for quantum resilience has already begun, with taking the lead via an innovative approach called Quantumroot, even as debates over governance and technical practicality grow more heated.

The core risk to Bitcoin arises from Shor’s algorithm, a quantum technique

from public ones, rendering the elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) that protects the blockchain ineffective. Predictions for when quantum computers might be able to launch such attacks—often called “Q-Day”—range from five to forty years, but the real concern is how long it will take to roll out post-quantum cryptography (PQC) upgrades. Roughly a quarter of all Bitcoin , such as early Pay-to-Public-Key (P2PK) addresses where public keys are already visible on the blockchain. The “collect now, decrypt later” tactic, where attackers , increases the threat.

Bitcoin Cash has taken a leading role in addressing these risks. Developer Jason Dreyzehner

, the first fully operational post-quantum vault system natively integrated into Bitcoin Cash’s scripting system. By utilizing the UTXO structure and CashVM’s introspection tools, Quantumroot achieves much lower transaction fees and better scalability than Ethereum-based alternatives. This system supports transactions or 400 different addresses in a single 100KB block, cutting costs by factors of 100 to 1000, all while preserving privacy and resistance to censorship. Dreyzehner points out that preparing for quantum threats isn’t just about cryptography—it also means enabling users to migrate smoothly, without risking network splits or emergency hard forks.

Yet, the wider Bitcoin ecosystem faces even tougher obstacles. Unlike Bitcoin Cash, which can adopt upgrades through consensus changes in 2025 and 2026, Bitcoin’s governance is more divided. Moving to PQC will require cooperation among miners, developers, and users, each with their own interests. Hybrid signature methods, which

, have been suggested, but ensuring backward compatibility and widespread adoption remains challenging. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has approved lattice-based algorithms like CRYSTALS-Kyber and Dilithium, but will take years of development and agreement.

At the same time, the quantum computing sector is advancing rapidly. Companies such as

and are and attracting investment, marking a transition from academic research to real-world applications. For example, South Korea’s KISTI has for a national quantum excellence center, reflecting the rising institutional focus on quantum technology. These trends underscore the need for cryptocurrencies to adapt to new quantum-safe standards.

The political implications are substantial. As quantum expert Adnan Masood observes, “The first major disruption could be panic, not physics”—

might spark market swings well before the technology is actually ready. For Bitcoin to withstand Q-Day, its community must address not only technical hurdles but also the delicate interplay between progress and collective agreement.

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Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.

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