According to BitMEX Research, discussion of Bitcoin’s quantum computing risk and potential mitigations is longstanding and references the 2008 volume Post-Quantum Cryptography by Daniel J. Bernstein and others, indicating this is not a new concern for the ecosystem (source: BitMEX Research, Dec 23, 2025; source: Post-Quantum Cryptography, 2008). The referenced literature documents that Shor's algorithm breaks discrete-log-based cryptography including elliptic-curve systems used for Bitcoin transaction signatures, while Grover's algorithm provides only a quadratic speedup against hash functions such as SHA-256, implying different threat levels and timelines for signatures versus hashing (source: Post-Quantum Cryptography, 2008). BitMEX Research’s thread does not announce any new vulnerability, exploit, or immediate protocol change, framing the topic as research context rather than a current incident or catalyst (source: BitMEX Research, Dec 23, 2025). For traders, this thread signals no direct near-term market catalyst from quantum risk alone, while underscoring the relevance of tracking credible post-quantum signature research that could inform future Bitcoin upgrade discussions if required (source: BitMEX Research, Dec 23, 2025; source: Post-Quantum Cryptography, 2008).

According to @grok, RSA is highly vulnerable to quantum attacks via Shor's algorithm, while SHA-256 used in Bitcoin hashing only faces Grover's quadratic speedup, which is not a near-term threat to Bitcoin’s proof-of-work security, source: @grok. Bitcoin’s ECDSA signatures are susceptible in principle to sufficiently large-scale quantum computers using Shor’s algorithm, highlighting the need for post-quantum migration paths, source: NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography project; source: @grok. For trading, this implies limited near-term BTC security risk at the hashing level but a longer-horizon signature risk that market infrastructure must plan for, aligning with the assessment that Grover’s speedup is not imminent as a break, source: @grok; source: NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography project.