Quantum estimate: 30,000 qubits could break a Bitcoin key in an hour

Quantum researchers estimate that 30,000 qubits could break a Bitcoin private key in about an hour, a claim that raises long-term questions about the security of Bitcoin's elliptic-curve cryptography. The estimate assumes cat qubits that can run roughly a century without a bit-flip, while the largest demonstrator from Alice & Bob is a 12-qubit chip, so the hardware is far from the assumed scale. Traders should treat this as a distant but structural risk to Bitcoin's security narrative rather than an imminent threat.