Institutions May Oust Bitcoin Devs Over Quantum Inaction: VC
Prominent venture capitalist Nic Carter has warned that large institutions holding substantial Bitcoin reserves could grow increasingly frustrated with the Bitcoin development community’s reluctance to promptly tackle the risks posed by quantum computing.
Carter expressed these views during an appearance on the Bits and Bips podcast, which was released on Thursday. He predicted that these major players in the Bitcoin space might reach a breaking point and decide to replace the current developers with a new team more responsive to their concerns.
In his assessment, Carter believes the existing developers are likely to maintain their current stance of inaction regarding this pressing issue.
Carter posed a rhetorical question aimed at giants like BlackRock: if you manage billions in client funds invested in Bitcoin and critical vulnerabilities remain unaddressed, what options do you realistically have to protect those assets?
Potential for a Corporate Takeover of Bitcoin Development
As the world’s leading asset management firm, BlackRock currently possesses approximately 761,801 Bitcoin, equivalent to about $50.15 billion in value at the time of writing. This stake represents roughly 3.62% of the entire Bitcoin supply circulating in the market.
Carter cautioned that without swift action from Bitcoin developers to integrate quantum-resistant cryptographic measures, the network could face a corporate takeover. He confidently asserted that such an intervention would ultimately prove successful in resolving the outstanding security challenges.
Austin Campbell, founder of Zero Knowledge Consulting, shared a comparable perspective. He noted that if institutions identify a fundamental structural weakness in the protocol and hold significant positions, they will eventually feel compelled to voice their demands and push for changes.
Carter has been particularly outspoken in recent times about the dangers quantum computing presents to Bitcoin’s foundational security. Just earlier this year, on January 21, he attributed Bitcoin’s enigmatic price struggles directly to quantum-related anxieties, describing it as the predominant narrative shaping market dynamics throughout the year.
At the moment of publication, Bitcoin’s price stood at $70,281, reflecting a decline of 26.25% over the preceding 30 days, based on data from CoinMarketCap.
That said, not all experts concur that institutions would actively seek to steer the Bitcoin network’s direction. Ram Ahluwahlia, founder of Lumida Wealth Management, characterized these major institutional investors as inherently passive participants. He emphasized that they do not typically engage in activist strategies to influence underlying assets.
Industry Divided on the Immediacy of Quantum Threats to Bitcoin
This discussion unfolds against a backdrop of ongoing debates within the cryptocurrency sector about the true timeline and severity of quantum computing’s potential impact on Bitcoin.
Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, regards quantum computing as a possible existential danger to Bitcoin’s long-term viability. He advocates for immediate upgrades to bolster the network’s defenses against such advanced computational threats.
On the other hand, Christopher Bendiksen, Bitcoin research lead at CoinShares, presented a more measured analysis in a recent publication. He calculated that only 10,230 out of 1.63 million Bitcoin are stored in wallet addresses featuring publicly exposed cryptographic keys susceptible to quantum attacks, suggesting the risk remains relatively contained for now.
Certain prominent figures in the Bitcoin community, including Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Strategy, and Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream, dismiss quantum risks as exaggerated. They argue that any realistic threat from this technology is decades away and unlikely to materially affect the network’s operations in the foreseeable future.
