No Bitcoin Soft Fork Needed For Quantum Resistance, StarkWare Says

On August 26, 2026, Avihu Levy’s Quantum-Safe Bitcoin method transitioned from research to reality with the first quantum-safe transaction mined on the mainnet. The transaction demonstrates a functional solution for protecting Bitcoin holdings against future quantum computing threats before such computers widely exist, allowing coin holders to move assets into quantum-resistant storage.

“People have long assumed that protecting Bitcoin holdings from a quantum adversary would require changing the Bitcoin protocol,” said Levy, a researcher and General Manager of Applications at StarkWare, who designed the method in his own time with the help of engineer Tomer Giladi. This achievement bypasses the need for a soft fork, challenging previous assumptions about the only path to quantum resistance.

Avihu Levy’s QSB Method Secures Bitcoin on Mainnet

Bitcoin’s reliance on elliptic curve cryptography presents a long-term vulnerability; a successful quantum computer could compromise the private keys securing holdings. However, a recent demonstration showcases a method to move coins into quantum-resistant storage without altering the fundamental rules of the Bitcoin network. Levy, with the aid of StarkWare engineer Tomer Giladi, constructed a system that adds a second layer of security alongside existing cryptographic locks, relying on hash functions instead of elliptic curves.