Galaxy Digital has pledged up to $5 million in grants to open-source developers building post-quantum cryptography for Bitcoin.<\/p>\n
The company also formed a quantum advisory council under its Bitcoin Quantum Readiness Initiative, which it announced<\/a> Tuesday. The council includes Barry Sanders, professor and scientific director of Quantum City at the University of Calgary; Damien B\u00e9rub\u00e9, an MIT Sea Grant Knauss fellow; and Eran Tromer, professor of computer science at Boston University.<\/p>\n The grants will fund quantum-resistant upgrade proposals, post-quantum cryptography, Bitcoin signature schemes, wallet and custodian migration tooling and formal security audits.<\/p>\n Bitcoin\u2019s quantum security is a growing concern, as about 30% of Bitcoin\u2019s supply<\/a> could be exposed if cryptographically relevant quantum computers emerge, according to analytics provider Glassnode. This includes 10% of the supply considered \u201cstructurally unsafe\u201d because of its output type, and 20% considered \u201coperationally unsafe\u201d because of key or address management practices.\u00a0<\/p>\n Source:\u00a0<\/em>Glassnode<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n The timeline for a practical quantum computing breakthrough remains hotly debated.<\/p>\n In November 2025, Blockstream CEO Adam Back that Bitcoin faces no meaningful quantum threat<\/a> for at least the next 20 to 40 years. Back said this gives the network ample time to adopt the post-quantum cryptography standards approved by the US Department of Commerce\u2019s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).\u00a0<\/p>\n In August 2024, NIST published<\/a> three post-quantum cryptography standards for key establishment and digital signatures. The standards include key exchange, digital signature and hash-based signature algorithms that could underpin future post-quantum migrations across industries, including potential Bitcoin upgrades.<\/p>\n Related: <\/strong><\/em>Bernstein says Bitcoin market already priced in quantum risk<\/strong><\/em><\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n In December 2025, Blockstream Research released a paper<\/a> proposing a hash-based signature scheme as a \u201cpromising path for securing Bitcoin in a post-quantum world.\u201d The proposal would replace Bitcoin\u2019s ECDSA and Schnorr signatures with a scheme whose security relies solely on cryptographic hash functions.<\/p>\n Wealth management company Bernstein said in an April report that Bitcoin has about<\/a> three to five years to prepare for a post-quantum security upgrade.\u00a0<\/p>\n Magazine: <\/strong><\/em>Bitcoin\u2019s quantum upgrade path: What BIP-360 changes and what it does not<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph\u2019s Editorial Policy<\/a> and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently. <\/p>\n![\"bitcoins\"](\"https:\/\/s3-images.ctmedia.io\/media\/content\/pasted-image-2109.png\" "\\"bitcoins\\"")
<\/figure>\nBitcoins Community split over quantum breakthrough timeline<\/h2>\n