Original Title: Quantum Advances Are An Opportunity For Crypto

Original Author: Sean Stein Smith, Forbes

Original Translation: Saoirse, Foresight News

At the moment, the crypto industry is already struggling to cope with itself amid a swirl of public-opinion controversies, geopolitical conflicts, and financial turmoil. And Google’s latest research has introduced a new challenge to this space: the timeline for practical, real-world quantum computing is being pushed forward again and again.

For years, the potential threats posed by quantum computing have been discussed, debated, and researched in industry circles, and blockchain developers have already been working on post-quantum cryptography. But what truly moves the investment market is the pace of technological iteration. Google’s Quantum AI team points out that a quantum computer with fewer than 500,000 qubits could crack the elliptic-curve cryptography algorithm used by Bitcoin—an encryption method long regarded as having the highest level of security. Leaving aside the technical parameters of qubits, the key fact is: the latest estimates of the number of qubits required are far lower than previously expected, which also brings forward the “life-or-death exam” time point facing the blockchain ecosystem to 2029.

In addition to the possibility that Bitcoin could expose security vulnerabilities in as little as 9 minutes, another report also focuses on the risks facing Ethereum: the network has up to 5 potential attack vectors, and once exploited, could put DeFi and tokenized assets worth about $100 billion at risk.

It needs to be made clear that the quantum computers mentioned in these research reports have not actually come to fruition yet; they remain at the theoretical level for now. But the related discussion has already driven double-digit gains in tokens and protocols that have post-quantum characteristics. What’s more, tokens considered “quantum-adaptable,” along with more advanced protocols such as zero-knowledge proofs, have also benefited from this wave of attention.

Putting speculation and panic-driven spikes aside, as quantum technology continues to permeate broader financial markets, investors should recognize some key experience and takeaways.

Quantum risk is no longer confined to the theoretical realm—this is actually a good thing

The conversation around quantum computing and cryptocurrency has already shifted from abstract risks to quantifiable, real threats.

New research shows that quantum systems may only need between 10,000 and 26,000 qubits to break the currently widely used cryptographic standards, a significant drop from the previously estimated millions. More importantly, the attack scenarios are no longer hypothetical. Researchers have outlined some attack methods: they can extract private keys from transactions that are already underway within minutes, and even move funds before the transaction is confirmed.

This reality forces investors, audit institutions, and policymakers to redefine the core of the problem: the risk is no longer just whether “quantum computing will never appear,” but whether existing systems can migrate quickly enough to a post-quantum cryptography environment. Some estimates suggest that “quantum nodes” could arrive as early as 2029, and the time window for the industry to respond is already shorter than the upgrade cycles of most financial infrastructure.

From a practical standpoint, the market is facing a classic accounting and valuation dilemma: it needs to recognize and assess it before contingent liabilities turn into actual losses.

The market is pricing in the quantum transition early

Although the underlying threat is gradually becoming more visible, market behavior shows that participants are not waiting for the situation to become fully clear. Tokens and projects focused on post-quantum resilience have climbed to nearly 50%, which suggests that capital is positioning itself in advance for defensive infrastructure and related projects.

This is a common pattern in financial markets: investors often incorporate structural risks into the price before those risks truly materialize. In the current context, that means capital will flow toward post-quantum cryptography technologies, upgraded blockchain protocols, and participants in this field that focus on security buildout.

Meanwhile, even as warnings have become increasingly clear, mainstream crypto asset prices have still remained relatively stable. This reflects the market forming a consensus: this transformation will be carried out through protocol-layer upgrades, rather than the industry collapsing.

For those working in accounting and auditing, this introduces a new dimension to valuation analysis. Digital assets not only have to deal with market volatility and regulatory changes, but also carry the risk of technological obsolescence—risks like this must be disclosed, modeled, and stress-tested.

The crypto industry is unlikely to disappear, but the underlying architecture will be rebuilt

Despite the mounting urgency of the warnings, the overall conclusions of various studies and industry commentary are very clear: quantum computing won’t upend the blockchain, but it will force it to rebuild its security system. Recent analysis has identified multiple attack paths, including fast exploitation of vulnerabilities at the transaction layer, as well as slow attacks targeting dormant wallets whose keys have already been exposed.

At the same time, ongoing research in the post-quantum cryptography field indicates that practical mitigation options already exist, but their level of widespread adoption is still uneven.

What matters is that any observer, investor, or policy advocate can prove: blockchain systems are not static. Protocol upgrades, hard forks, and cryptographic algorithm migration have long been part of how the ecosystem operates. Compared with traditional financial infrastructure, this adaptability is itself a structural advantage.

What quantum computing brings is not a fatal flaw, but a forced opportunity to move forward. The final winners won’t be those trying to evade risk, but rather the participants who drive the transition to implementation—embedding post-quantum capabilities into governance, information disclosure, and technical design before the threats fully materialize.

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