Glassnode Report Finds Over 6M BTC Vulnerable To Quantum Threats As Key Exposure Returns To 2016 Levels
In Brief
Glassnode: 6.26M BTC, or 31.2% of supply, exposed to quantum risks through visible public keys; exchanges hold 1.79M BTC in vulnerable addresses.
Roughly 6.26 million BTC, equivalent to 31.2% of Bitcoin’s total supply, is currently held in addresses whose public keys are already visible on-chain and therefore exposed to potential quantum computing attacks, according to new data published by Glassnode co-founder Rafael Schultze-Kraft.
The figure represents a notable increase from 24.8% in early 2021 and has returned to levels last seen in 2016, even as the total supply grew by only 64,000 BTC over the same period. Of the exposed coins, approximately 4.33 million BTC became vulnerable through address reuse — meaning the public key was revealed in a previous spend — while another 1.94 million BTC are exposed structurally through script types such as Pay-to-Public-Key (P2PK) and Taproot.
Within the structural category, 1.71 million BTC sits in P2PK outputs, of which 1.10 million is attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto, and 222,000 BTC is held in Taproot addresses, where the output key is visible by design. Glassnode stresses that the statistics measure on-chain key exposure only and do not indicate that any assets have been attacked, nor do they constitute an assessment of the security of any exchange or custodian.
Exchanges and Institutions Show Sharply Divergent Exposure Profiles
The exposure is unevenly distributed across the industry. Among identified exchange holdings, approximately 1.79 million BTC — or 57% of the total — sits behind visible public keys, up from 55% in Glassnode’s May report.
The variation between platforms is considerable: Coinbase shows roughly 10% exposed balances, Binance 83%, and Bitfinex 100%, with seven of the fifteen largest exchange balances above 99%. Among other large holders, Fidelity reports only 2% exposure across its 375,000 BTC, while Grayscale stands at 49%, Revolut at 99%, and Robinhood at 100%. Government holdings in the United States, United Kingdom, and El Salvador show effectively zero exposure.
The findings arrive amid heightened debate over the durability of the Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA), which secures Bitcoin and Ethereum. Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake recently urged the industry to begin planning for what he termed “bunker mode,” recommending a controlled migration of assets to fresh addresses whose public keys remain hidden behind hashes, while cautioning against panic and rushed transfers.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin largely concurred, warning that AI-accelerated mathematical progress could undermine not only elliptic curves but also lattice-based schemes, and advocating hash-based cryptographic constructions where feasible. At the same time, Buterin advised holders against scrambling to move funds, noting that botched migrations have historically caused greater losses than hacks. Glassnode’s data underscores that operational wallet hygiene, rather than protocol design alone, remains the most immediate lever for reducing visible exposure.
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About The Author
Alisa, a dedicated journalist at the MPost, specializes in crypto, AI, investments, and the expansive realm of Web3. With a keen eye for emerging trends and technologies, she delivers comprehensive coverage to inform and engage readers in the ever-evolving landscape of digital finance.
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Alisa, a dedicated journalist at the MPost, specializes in crypto, AI, investments, and the expansive realm of Web3. With a keen eye for emerging trends and technologies, she delivers comprehensive coverage to inform and engage readers in the ever-evolving landscape of digital finance.
