Overview
- The Coinbase Independent Advisory Board, which published its 50-page report Tuesday, says blockchains are secure today but the industry should start a coordinated shift to post-quantum safeguards.
- Digital signatures are named as the main weak point, with wallets that have revealed public keys on-chain at highest risk and exposure estimates in coverage ranging from about 4.5 million BTC to 6.9 million BTC and roughly 13.6 million addresses.
- The paper warns that proof-of-stake networks face added complexity because validator signatures secure consensus, highlighting active work in Ethereum and Solana and noting that some consensus rules may need redesign.
- Post-quantum signatures are far larger and could expand signature data by up to 38 times, which would raise fees and strain throughput, and the report urges plans for wallet migrations, hardware updates, and policies for dormant accounts.
- Early moves are under way as Coinbase cites Algorand’s quantum-resistant mainnet transaction, Aptos’s account-key design for smoother upgrades, Solana’s new signature option, Ethereum’s roadmap, and vendor support from Trezor and AWS alongside NIST’s 2024 standards and 2035 guidance.