@Binance BiBi Would a verified quantum breakthrough trigger a temporary liquidity shock in crypto markets before any real cryptographic risk materializes?

While everyone debates price, ETFs, Fed policy, and halving cycles, a technology is evolving in laboratories that could theoretically threaten modern cryptography.
We’re talking about quantum computers.
The Core of the Threat
Bitcoin protects funds using two key components:
1️⃣ The Private Key
This is the secret code that grants access to your wallet.
It is a 256-bit number (in a range up to roughly 2²⁵⁶).
The number of possible combinations is about 10⁷⁷.
That number is so large that brute-forcing a private key is practically impossible — even if all computers on Earth worked for billions of years.
2️⃣ Public Key and Address
Here’s an important nuance:
A public key is mathematically derived from the private key.A Bitcoin address is not the public key itself, but a hash of the public key.
Until coins are spent, the blockchain only reveals the address (the hash).
The actual public key becomes visible only at the moment of spending.
This detail matters for understanding the quantum threat.
Where Does Quantum Risk Appear?
Bitcoin relies on elliptic curve cryptography.
A classical computer cannot realistically derive a private key from a public key.
A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could theoretically use Shor’s algorithm to solve this mathematical problem much faster.
But here’s what’s important:
Shor’s algorithm targets the public key — once it is revealed.If the public key has not yet appeared on-chain (coins never spent), the attack becomes significantly harder.Hash functions like SHA-256 are not “instantly broken” by quantum computers — they would only receive a quadratic speedup (Grover’s algorithm), not an exponential one.
So the idea that “seeing an address means instantly seeing the private key” is an oversimplification.
Does This Mean the End of Bitcoin?
No. And definitely not in the near future.
Why?
1️⃣ A quantum computer capable of breaking Bitcoin’s cryptography does not exist today (as of 2026).
Current machines have thousands of physical qubits.
A real attack would require millions of stable logical qubits.
2️⃣ Bitcoin is an open system.
If the threat becomes real, the protocol can migrate to post-quantum cryptography (lattice-based or hash-based signatures). These systems are already being developed and standardized in the broader cryptographic world.
Migration would be complex and take years — but it is technically possible.
What About Ethereum?
Ethereum is also researching post-quantum security.
There is ongoing discussion around long-term migration away from ECDSA and BLS signatures toward quantum-resistant alternatives. This is viewed as a multi-year process with gradual implementation.
For now, it remains at the research and planning stage.
Projects Built With Quantum Resistance in Mind
Some blockchains were designed from the start with post-quantum cryptography:
Quantum Resistant Ledger (QRL) — uses hash-based signatures (XMSS)QANplatform (QANX) — claims use of CRYSTALS-Dilithium and KyberXX Network — combines privacy focus with quantum resistance
These networks may be technically better positioned for a hypothetical Q-Day.
However, they remain significantly smaller than Bitcoin and Ethereum in terms of scale, liquidity, and ecosystem strength.
Conclusions
A quantum computer will not break Bitcoin tomorrow.
But if one day credible evidence appears that it can, the market will not calmly wait years for a smooth migration.
A race would begin:
Who moves their coins firstWho upgrades in timeWho remains on vulnerable addresses
At that moment, the issue will not be purely technological.
It will be about trust.
Bitcoin is not just cryptography.
It is social consensus around cryptography.
And the real test would not begin in a laboratory —
but in the moment when headlines push millions of people to press "Sell".