Bitcoin Developer Jameson Lopp Advocates for Freezing 5.6 Million BTC to Thwart Hackers

A prominent Bitcoin core developer has expressed a preference for freezing the estimated 5.6 million lost bitcoin, valued at approximately $420 billion, rather than risking them being seized by future quantum hackers. Jameson Lopp emphasized that, although he does not want to restrict anyone's access to their bitcoin, removing dormant coins from circulation might be a safer option for the network. Lopp's comments come after the release of BIP-361, a proposal that explores phasing out bitcoin's current cryptographic signatures and potentially invalidating transactions from quantum-vulnerable wallets. He described the proposal as a 'rough idea for a contingency plan' and stated that he hopes it will never be necessary. Lopp's primary concern is the potential threat posed by quantum recovery, which he believes could undermine confidence in the network and introduce significant volatility. The proposal has sparked intense debate within the community, with some arguing that freezing dormant accounts would be a departure from Bitcoin's core principles and others seeing it as a necessary measure to protect the network. Market analyst Mati Greenspan noted that the debate is more philosophical than technological, and that freezing dormant coins could remove a major risk but also introduce a precedent of intervention. Others, such as Leo Fan, argue that freezing accounts could weaken Bitcoin's promise of 'unstoppable money' and make ownership conditional.