Cardano Founder Disputes Bitcoin's Quantum Solution, Claims It Won't Rescue Satoshi's Coins

Bitcoin developers have proposed a solution to protect against quantum attacks by freezing 8 million coins. However, according to Cardano's Charles Hoskinson, this solution is technically flawed and cannot safeguard coins belonging to Satoshi Nakamoto. Hoskinson claims that BIP-361, a proposal aimed at phasing out quantum-vulnerable addresses, is being misrepresented as a soft fork when it would actually require a hard fork due to its impact on existing signature schemes. A hard fork is necessary because it would invalidate existing schemes that users rely on, Hoskinson stated. The proposal suggests using zero-knowledge proofs tied to BIP-39 seed phrases for users to reclaim frozen funds, but Hoskinson argues this approach is ineffective for approximately 1.7 million bitcoins predating BIP-39's introduction in 2013, including those associated with Satoshi's early mining activities. These early coins were generated using a different key derivation method and would remain permanently frozen if the proposal passes in its current form. Jameson Lopp, co-author of BIP-361, has expressed reservations about the proposal, describing it as a rough contingency plan rather than a finalized specification. Lopp estimates that freezing dormant coins, approximately 5.6 million bitcoins, would be preferable to allowing a future quantum attacker to recover and dump them on the market. Hoskinson's critique extends beyond technical details, arguing that Bitcoin's lack of formal on-chain governance hinders the network's ability to resolve tradeoffs through a structured process, leading to contentious upgrades being negotiated through developer mailing lists and social pressure.