Strategy, BlackRock, Coinbase and six other companies have formed the Bitcoin Security Consortium to fund work on Bitcoin’s long-term security.
Summary
- Nine major firms pledged $15 million over three years to support Bitcoin security research worldwide.
- Post-quantum cryptography leads the consortium’s agenda, although no capable attack system currently exists anywhere.
- Members will fund chosen developers independently without directing Bitcoin’s protocol changes or its open-source community.
The founding members pledged a combined $15 million over three years for developers, researchers and organizations working on the network.
The other members are Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, Block, Blockstream, Fidelity Digital Assets and Galaxy. Brink Executive Director Mike Schmidt will coordinate the group’s daily work as a volunteer. Each company will choose where to direct its own funding rather than pay into one shared pool.
Consortium targets Bitcoin’s long-term security
The consortium named post-quantum cryptography as its first area of focus. This field develops methods designed to resist attacks from classical and quantum computers. Bitcoin currently relies on elliptic curve cryptography to prove ownership and authorize transactions.
Large-scale quantum computers cannot break Bitcoin’s cryptography today. However, a powerful enough machine running Shor’s algorithm could derive a private key from an exposed public key. An attacker could then try to move funds from a vulnerable address. Researchers still disagree on when such a machine could exist.
“As long-term holders, we have every incentive to see Bitcoin remain secure for generations,” said Strategy CEO Phong Le.
BlackRock global head of digital assets Robert Mitchnick also said the member firms will make more funding available for Bitcoin Core developers and long-term security work.
Members will not control Bitcoin development
The group said it will not develop or direct Bitcoin’s protocol, endorse specific changes or speak for Bitcoin developers. The open-source community will continue to debate, test and approve any changes through Bitcoin’s existing process.
That limit matters because the consortium includes major companies connected to Bitcoin. BlackRock and Fidelity offer institutional Bitcoin products, while Coinbase and Anchorage Digital provide trading and custody services. Strategy holds Bitcoin as its main treasury asset. Blockstream and Block develop Bitcoin infrastructure and payment products.
Members will select developers, researchers and nonprofit groups independently. The consortium also plans to publish material about Bitcoin security for investors, the public and the media. It said those updates will track technical developments rather than establish policy for the network.
Quantum readiness work expands
The consortium arrived two days after Galaxy launched its separate Bitcoin Quantum Readiness Initiative. Galaxy committed up to $5 million in grants for post-quantum tools, wallet migration systems, signature research and security audits. It also formed an advisory council and research program.
Galaxy said no cryptographically relevant quantum computer exists today. Still, it warned that Bitcoin upgrades may require years of design, testing and adoption because the network uses decentralized governance. Galaxy is also a founding member of the consortium, but its separate grant program has its own review process.
As crypto.news reported, Coinbase’s independent advisory board urged Bitcoin developers to begin a quantum migration plan now. The board did not support a set policy for old or vulnerable coins. It called for technical preparation before the threat becomes practical.
Crypto companies have also started testing new tools. BitGo and Silence Laboratories completed a simulation using a post-quantum signing system in an institutional custody workflow. Developers are also discussing BIP-360, which would add a new Bitcoin output type designed to reduce future quantum exposure.
Estimates differ on exposed Bitcoin
Project Eleven’s Bitcoin Risq List estimated that 6,982,462 BTC sat in addresses with exposed public keys as of June 15. The figure includes coins affected by older address types and address reuse. The tracker does not claim that current hardware can steal those coins.
Other studies use narrower definitions. As previously reported, Glassnode estimated in May that 1.92 million BTC faced structural exposure because their output types reveal public keys by design. It placed another 4.12 million BTC in an operational category tied to address reuse and wallet practices.
Project Eleven’s 2026 quantum threat report placed its baseline estimate for “Q-Day,” when a quantum computer could break current public-key cryptography, in 2033. Its early scenario placed the date in 2030, while its later case extended to 2042. These estimates remain uncertain and depend on advances in hardware, error correction and algorithms.
The U.S. government has also accelerated its planning. A June executive order directed federal agencies to move high-value systems to post-quantum key establishment by the end of 2030 and post-quantum digital signatures by the end of 2031.
The consortium said it will publish further material and continue funding security work. It did not name grant recipients, list individual company contribution amounts or propose a deadline for a Bitcoin protocol upgrade.
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