BlockBeats news, on March 19, according to CoinDesk, Alex Thorn, Research Director at Galaxy Digital, stated that quantum computing poses a real threat to Bitcoin, but it is far from constituting an existential crisis; investors should not mistake this long-term technological challenge for an immediate and urgent threat.
At the threat level, a sufficiently advanced quantum computer could theoretically derive private keys from exposed public keys, thereby forging signatures and stealing funds. Analysis by Project Eleven, a security organization focused on quantum risks to digital assets, shows that approximately 7 million bitcoins—valued at around $470 billion based on recent prices—may be vulnerable under the definition of "long-term exposure," meaning their public keys have been exposed on-chain. However, Thorn emphasizes that most bitcoins currently do not face direct risk; exposure occurs only in cases such as address reuse, custodians taking operational shortcuts, or funds stored in addresses using outdated formats.
On the mitigation front, Thorn noted that Bitcoin developers are advancing multiple solutions, including introducing new address types that rely on post-quantum cryptography, enabling users to migrate funds away from potentially vulnerable formats, and proposing a "hourglass"-style phased restriction approach for dormant coins with permanently exposed public keys. "There's far more work underway than people realize," Thorn said, "developers are actively building pathways to upgrade the system."
Regarding advice for investors, Thorn stated that quantum risk should be monitored, but it should not serve as a reason to avoid exposure to Bitcoin. “Quantum computing is a powerful and potentially disruptive technology, but that doesn’t mean every risk is immediate or unmanageable,” he added. “Bitcoin developers are not ignoring this issue; many are actively advancing work in this area.”