Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, co-founder of Binance, reassured the cryptocurrency community following Google’s research indicating that quantum computers could potentially breach blockchain encryption with significantly fewer resources than previously thought.
Google’s Quantum AI team published a whitepaper which revealed that breaking elliptic curve cryptography, a core component of Bitcoin and Ethereum security, could require fewer than 500,000 physical qubits. This represents a marked decrease from the previous estimate of around 20 million qubits in 2019.
CZ urged calm, stating that the industry can shift to quantum-resistant algorithms to mitigate the threat. “At a high level, all crypto has to do is upgrade to Quantum-Resistant (Post-Quantum) Algorithms. So, no need to panic,” he wrote in a post on X.
Despite framing the solution as straightforward, CZ acknowledged the challenges involved in coordinating upgrades across decentralized networks. He noted these efforts could spark debates over algorithm selection and potentially lead to network forks. He cautioned that new quantum-resistant code might introduce bugs or security vulnerabilities, and that users would need to migrate their assets to new wallets.
He suggested that the transition to quantum resistance might inadvertently act as a market correction, stating, “Some dead projects may not upgrade at all,” which could help cleanse the market of underperforming projects.
The urgency around these developments is underscored by Google’s accelerated migration timeline for post-quantum cryptography, now scheduled for completion by 2029. The company warned in February 2026 that adversaries are already employing “store now, decrypt later” strategies by harvesting encrypted data, with hopes that future quantum machines will be able to crack existing protections.
Google has begun re-routing internal traffic to ML-KEM, a post-quantum cryptography standard finalized by NIST in August 2024. The research highlighted that the latest qubit estimates are in line with advancements in Google’s flagship quantum processors, suggesting that the threat level is an immediate concern.
CZ emphasized that the cryptocurrency sector must act swiftly to establish quantum-resistant standards before quantum computing technology matures. “Encryption technology will always outperform decryption,” he asserted, expressing confidence that cryptographic systems will endure beyond the quantum age.
