Bitcoin Firms Build Quantum Defenses as BIP-360 Targets Long-Exposure Risk
Updated
Updated · Bitcoin Magazine · Sep 18
Bitcoin Firms Build Quantum Defenses as BIP-360 Targets Long-Exposure Risk
3 articles · Updated · Bitcoin Magazine · Sep 18
Summary
VanEck’s Matthew Sigel said Bitcoin’s decentralized community has recognized quantum computing as a real long-term risk and is building a framework to upgrade the network.
Live sidechains are already testing quantum-resistant signatures, while Coinbase said in July it plans a post-quantum signing pipeline using secure enclaves and threshold cryptography.
BIP-360 has become a focal proposal, aiming to add a new transaction output type that reduces long-exposure quantum risks for Bitcoin users.
July’s Bitcoin Security Consortium — backed by BlackRock, Fidelity Digital Assets, Block and others — is funding open-source work and assigning engineers to support those defenses.
A quantum computer capable of breaking Bitcoin cryptography does not yet exist, but Sigel said governance limits mean meaningful upgrades will likely unfold over the next couple of years.