Overview
- Glassnode’s Oct. 8 update shows about 6.26 million BTC, or 31.2% of circulating supply, sit behind public keys that are visible on the blockchain.
- The exposed total rose by roughly 222,000 BTC since May while overall supply grew by about 64,000 BTC, meaning exposure is rising faster than new issuance.
- Centralized exchanges hold about 1.79 million of the exposed coins and platform exposure varies widely, with reported rates near 10% at Coinbase, 83% at Binance, and 100% at some brokers.
- Public keys become visible when an address is reused or when certain output types place the key on-chain, and visibility is a measurement of past address use rather than proof of a current exploit.
- Researchers warn that a powerful quantum computer or a sudden AI-driven cryptographic breakthrough could theoretically derive private keys from visible public keys, making exchanges and custodians the practical focus for near-term mitigation efforts.