BlackRock has added a quantum computing warning to iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) filing. Based on the report, asset managers are looking at the future risk that super-powerful machines could crack the maths that secure Bitcoin. This is the first time BlackRock has flagged this concern in Bitcoin ETF documents.
BlackRock flags quantum risk
According to a regulatory filing updated on May 9, BlackRock lists “quantum computing” that could be a threat to Bitcoin ETFs. The trust holds a net worth of around $64 billion, making it the largest spot Bitcoin fund on record.
Company lawyers say that if the quantum processor becomes strong enough, they can decrypt the private key and put wallet security at risk. It is a standard move in ETF filing, and be aware of any possible risks, even if it feels far away.
BlackRock lists “quantum computing” as one of the possible threats to its Bitcoin ETF. Source: BlackRock SEC IBIT filing.
Quantum chip raises alarm
Based on the report, concerns began when Google announced Willow last December. This claimed that today’s supercomputers will resolve certain tasks in minutes that will be 10 losses. A few months later, Microsoft introduced the Mayorana 1 to tackle the long-standing scaling hurdles. These announcements sparked alarm bells in the crypto world.
In theory, quantum devices running Shor’s algorithms can take into account the mass behind Bitcoin’s elliptic curve signatures. In reality, we are still in the early days of the error-prone “NISQ” era, so the actual attacks remain at least a few years away.
Questions about lost bitcoin
Tether CEO Paolo Aldoino raised a different angle in February. He suggested that if Quantum Hacker could break the old private key, it could potentially recover Bitcoin from around 3.7 million coins that were thought to have been lost forever.
Ardoino emphasized that the coins will not reappear anytime soon, as quantum machines are still apart from breaking 256-bit security. Crypto analyst Willy Woo jumped in and asked if Google, government agencies or new startups would seize these dormant assets first. He believes that if these keys become vulnerable, $350 billion of lost coins could drive fresh quantum investments.
Image: The Quantum Insider
ETF influx hits records
Meanwhile, Bitcoin ETFs have drawn more cash than ever before. Data from far side investors show net inflows of over $41 billion since these funds were launched in January. On May 8th, weekly ETF influx exceeded the previous record $40 billion.
Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Eric Bulknass called Lifetime Netflow “the hardest metric to grow,” but ETFs competed for new highs despite recent market uncertainties. Investors seem to focus on today’s price movements, not on tomorrow’s quantum questions.
Over the next few months, Crypto developers and standards groups will work on a “post-Quantum” signature scheme. If they stay on schedule, the Bitcoin network can adopt new quantum resistance algorithms long before the actual threat appears. For now, the massive market inflow suggests that mainstream buyers are not yet scared of the next generation of computing power.
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