Coinbase Research Director: About One-Third of Bitcoin May Be Vulnerable to Quantum Attack

On January 6, Coinbase’s Global Head of Investment Research David Duong warned that as quantum computing technology advances rapidly, Bitcoin’s long-term security is entering “uncharted waters.” Risks tied to quantum computing are significantly underestimated in today’s $3.3 trillion crypto market, he noted. Duong stated that roughly one-third of Bitcoin’s supply is at risk of future quantum brute-force attacks, as the public keys for these wallets are publicly exposed. While quantum computing is still in its early days, the associated threats have shifted from theoretical to practical. He emphasized that compared to quantum computing’s potential impact on mining efficiency, the real core risk lies in digital signature security. Once quantum computers gain sufficient power, attackers could derive private keys from public keys and directly steal Bitcoin assets. Previously, firms including BlackRock have explicitly listed quantum computing as a risk factor in Bitcoin ETF filings. Some researchers even predict quantum computing could threaten Bitcoin’s cryptographic system within 4–5 years.