Key Takeaways
- › Quip Network is bringing post-quantum protection to Bitcoin via Arch Network, with no soft fork required
- › Roughly 34% of all bitcoin in circulation sits in quantum-vulnerable addresses
- › The approach requires no protocol upgrade, no community vote, and carries no risk of frozen or lost funds
- › The arch-sdk is on npm; the consumer wallet app launches next week
Quip Network has deployed quantum-resistant Bitcoin wallets on Arch Network, a Bitcoin-native smart contract layer. The architecture works on top of Bitcoin as it exists, with no soft fork, no consensus change, and no community vote. The arch-sdk is available on npm today, and the consumer wallet app launches next week.
Why this can't wait
Roughly 34% of all bitcoin in circulation is held in addresses that a sufficiently capable quantum computer could crack. Google's recent research suggests that once quantum hardware reaches that capability, breaking a key could take under nine minutes, though the first machines to reach the threshold are unlikely to operate that quickly.
34%
of all bitcoin in circulation sits in addresses that a sufficiently capable quantum computer could crack.
Source: BIP-361 proposal
The Bitcoin community has been arguing about what to do for years. Recently, a group of developers including Jameson Lopp published BIP-361, a proposal that would phase out quantum-vulnerable addresses on a five-year timeline and freeze coins that fail to migrate. That includes around 5.6 million long-dormant coins and roughly 1 million BTC widely believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto. Critics have called the proposal authoritarian and confiscatory. Supporters argue it's the only way to prevent a future quantum attacker from minting trillions of dollars out of dormant wallets.
Both camps have a point. Freezing coins violates the permissionless promise Bitcoin was built on, doing nothing leaves a third of the supply exposed, and any protocol-level fix, whether BIP-360, P2MR, or something else, is realistically 5 to 10 years out.
We think there's a third option: protect Bitcoin holders today, on Bitcoin, without touching consensus and without freezing or losing anyone's coins.
"The Bitcoin community has delayed a fix for years, despite Satoshi himself discussing the quantum problem. Developers say any protocol upgrade could take 5 to 10 years, but with Quip's approach, we provide similar protection immediately. It's simple and works on top of Bitcoin today, using existing rules, with no community vote required."
Colton Dillion, CEO and co-founder, Postquant Labs
How it works
A Quip account commits a post-quantum public key directly to Bitcoin through Arch Network, an L2 anchored to real Bitcoin. Funds stored through Arch pick up any post-quantum protection the L2 implements, automatically, without the user doing anything else. The key is committed to Bitcoin itself rather than stored in an external database.
The cryptographic primitive underneath is WOTS+ (Winternitz One-Time Signatures), a well-studied post-quantum scheme. We layer it with existing Bitcoin signatures so users get additive security: classical and quantum protections together. A third-party audit is in progress, and we released the code early so the community can pick it apart in parallel.
Full quantum resistance for Bitcoin will eventually come from something like P2MR or BIP-360. Until then, L2s can do things Bitcoin core can't easily do yet, including key rotation and hashed outputs. These intermediate techniques narrow the quantum exposure window to as little as two blocks, which is too short for any near-term quantum computer to act on. A Bitcoin public key becomes visible on the blockchain as soon as a transaction is submitted to the mempool, which begins a race between the Bitcoin miners trying to confirm the transaction and a future quantum computer trying to steal the funds.
"A Bitcoin holder doesn't have to trust Quip Network at all. It is much easier for Bitcoin L2s to implement quantum protection than it is for Bitcoin core. The code is open-source and auditable. You get all of the original security guarantees, and you get increased protections automatically as the L2s implement them."
Dr. Richard Carback, CTO and co-founder, Postquant Labs
You don't have to move your coins
Some Bitcoiners are skeptical of any third-party wrapper, and that's fair. So we built an alternative path: register a wallet to claim a post-quantum public key without moving funds into the quantum-resistant wallet at all.
If a quantum attack ever materializes, that registered key proves ownership of the classical funds without relying on a private database or an expensive zero-knowledge proof of seed phrase knowledge. The on-chain claim is already there when you need it.
This is the option we'd recommend to anyone who wants quantum insurance without changing how they custody bitcoin today.
What's shipping
The arch-sdk is on npm today, so developers can start integrating post-quantum wallet protection into their Bitcoin applications now. The consumer wallet app, full documentation on Gitbook, and the open-source codebase on GitHub all go live next week.
Quantum-resistant Quip accounts are already live on Ethereum and Solana, and Bitcoin is the third chain to receive support. Because all inputs to a smart contract can be independently verified, putting post-quantum protection at the contract layer guarantees ownership even when the underlying network hasn't yet implemented its own post-quantum protections. This is a useful primitive for the broader DeFi ecosystem.
Dr. Carback is a long-time collaborator with Dr. David Chaum, the inventor of eCash, who advises the project and has his own proposal for on-chain Bitcoin quantum protection. The work is happening from multiple angles, which is the right way to handle a problem of this scale.
Get started
- Install:
npm install @arch-network/arch-sdk - Wallet users: Sign up at quip.network (launches next week)
- Documentation: Gitbook
- Developers: GitHub
FAQ
Why are 34% of bitcoin vulnerable to quantum attacks? +
Bitcoin addresses that have exposed their public key on-chain (typically because the coins have been spent from before, or because they use older address formats) are vulnerable to attack by a sufficiently capable quantum computer. This includes around 5.6 million long-dormant coins and roughly 1 million BTC widely believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto.
Do I have to move my bitcoin to use Quip? +
No. The Quip wallet lets you register a post-quantum public key without moving funds into the quantum-resistant wallet. If a quantum attack materializes, the registered key proves ownership of your classical funds without relying on a private database or a zero-knowledge proof of seed phrase knowledge.
How is this different from BIP-361? +
BIP-361 is a proposed Bitcoin protocol change that would phase out quantum-vulnerable addresses on a five-year timeline and freeze any coins that fail to migrate. Quip's approach requires no protocol change, no community vote, and carries no risk of frozen or lost funds. It works on top of Bitcoin today using existing rules.
What cryptography does Quip use? +
Quip uses WOTS+ (Winternitz One-Time Signatures), a well-studied post-quantum cryptographic primitive. We layer it with existing Bitcoin signatures so users get additive security: classical and quantum protections together.
Has the code been audited? +
A third-party audit is in progress. We released the code early so the community can review it in parallel with the formal audit process. The full open-source codebase publishes on GitHub next week.
What is Arch Network? +
Arch Network is a Bitcoin-native smart contract layer, or L2, that is anchored to real Bitcoin. It enables smart contract functionality directly on Bitcoin's base layer without bridges or wrapped assets, which means Quip accounts can commit post-quantum keys to Bitcoin itself rather than to an external system.
When will the consumer wallet be available? +
The consumer wallet app launches next week, alongside full documentation on Gitbook and the open-source codebase on GitHub. The arch-sdk is already available on npm for developers who want to start integrating post-quantum wallet protection into their Bitcoin applications today.
What other chains does Quip support? +
Quantum-resistant Quip accounts are already live on Ethereum and Solana. Bitcoin is the third chain, with the consumer wallet launching next week.
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