On August 2, according to Forbes, the CEO of the gold investment app Vaulted, David McAlvany, said he believes Bitcoin could disappear within the next four years due to quantum computing. He said that once quantum computers can quickly solve the mathematical problems that protect Bitcoin private keys, “that would be the end of Bitcoin.”

However, McAlvany later admitted that he could not determine whether the relevant breakthroughs would appear in four or five years or in just two months. By mid-2026, there is no quantum computer capable of cracking Bitcoin’s encryption algorithms. His views are mainly based on concerns about the future pace of quantum computing development, rather than security incidents that have already occurred.

Galaxy Digital estimates that the addresses holding about 7 million BTC have already had their public keys exposed on-chain, with an estimated value of about $470 billion; Glassnode estimates 6.04 million BTC, representing 30.2% of the Bitcoin supply. Public key exposure does not necessarily mean the assets have been stolen. Only if quantum computers can derive the private keys from the public keys would these addresses face a real risk of theft.

McAlvany also compares Bitcoin to gold and questions whether Bitcoin can still exist after 5,000 years. He says he is relatively confident that gold will still be there, but that Bitcoin—"may exist or may not exist."

Bitcoin developers currently disagree on how to handle the solution. BIP-360 proposes adding post-quantum address types; BIP-361 plans to phase out support for older signature schemes. Assets that are not migrated in time could be permanently frozen, including bitcoins believed to be associated with Satoshi Nakamoto. Supporters argue that frozen assets are preferable to letting quantum attackers steal and sell them, while critics view it as confiscation.

BOLTS Technologies, along with companies such as American Fortress, is also developing cross-chain post-quantum solutions. American Fortress completed a $8 million seed round in May and claims that its technology can protect assets without requiring users to migrate addresses. However, the relevant technical papers have not yet been published, and the design has not undergone public auditing.