The Cryptographic Dilemma Under the Threat of Quantum Computing

Many people focus on whether Bitcoin can be cracked by quantum computing, but this narrows the scope of the issue. The real risk lies here: the entire infrastructure of the current financial system—banks, payment networks, stock exchanges—all of these systems are almost entirely built on cryptography.

Once the quantum threat becomes a reality, the impact will not be limited to Bitcoin and Ethereum. Traditional financial payment clearing, data transmission encryption, identity authentication systems—all rely on cryptographic protection. When quantum computers become powerful enough, they will be able to break existing encryption algorithms like RSA and ECC.

What does this mean? It means that from central banks to commercial banks, from stock exchanges to Alipay and WeChat, as long as they rely on traditional cryptography, they will face the same threat. In contrast, Bitcoin, due to its open-source transparency, may adapt more quickly to post-quantum cryptography upgrades.

Therefore, when discussing the quantum threat, it’s important not to focus solely on encrypted assets. This is a technological revolution that impacts the entire financial system. Both traditional finance and the Web3 space need to prepare in advance.