Quantum threat controversy flares up again, with anti-quantum encrypted cryptocurrencies seeing a short-term increase of up to 50%

Gate News report: Google has recently released research progress in quantum computing, prompting the cryptocurrency market to reassess technical risk. Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) prices have seen limited volatility, but quantum-resistant crypto tokens are performing strongly, with some gains reaching 50%, indicating investors have strong interest in future security assets.

Google’s Quantum AI team noted that a computer with fewer than 500,000 quantum bits could crack Bitcoin’s elliptic-curve encryption. This figure is far lower than previous expectations. In theory, a sufficiently advanced quantum computer could attack the Bitcoin network within nine minutes. Meanwhile, Ethereum has five potential attack vectors, involving decentralized finance and tokenized assets, with total risk estimated at about $100 billion. Although the relevant equipment has not yet appeared, market interest in “post-quantum encryption” assets has quickly heated up.

Data show that quantum-resistant ledgers (QRL) and Cellframe (CEL) saw their stock prices jump 50% within the past 24 hours, Abelian (ABEL) rose 25%, Qubic (QUBIC) and QANplatform (QANX) each gained 10%, and the privacy coin Zcash (ZEC) rose nearly 7% over the same period. The total market capitalization for this category increased 8% in 24 hours, reaching $4.66 billion. While ZEC does not yet truly have quantum-resistant capability, its zero-knowledge proofs and post-quantum ZK-SNARK research make it a core asset in the quantum security narrative.

Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, said that quantum attack risk has begun to be reflected in Bitcoin’s price. In the second half of 2025, Bitcoin’s price fell from $126,000 to $80,000, decoupling from stock-market trends and highlighting the market impact of quantum risk. At the same time, ZEC saw a strong rally, with its cumulative full-year gains exceeding 1,200%, topping out at $744, further confirming the market’s pursuit of future quantum-safe assets.

Analysts believe that, although quantum threats are still in a theoretical stage, investors’ interest in post-quantum encryption projects may continue to drive price volatility in the short term—especially Layer-1 tokens focused on security and quantum-resistant capability—which may stand out in the market. (CoinDesk)