River CEO warns that Bitcoin at risk from quantum computers, sees no danger for banking stays

While quantum computing poses a threat to Bitcoin‘s security, banks have multiple defenses in place to prevent a widespread collapse, River’s Leishman says.

The debate over whether quantum computers could threaten Bitcoin (BTC) is heating up once again, with River CEO Alexander Leishman arguing that Bitcoin is at greater risk than traditional banking systems.

It is VERY fair to debate the timeline of a quantum threat to Bitcoin. I'm personally quite skeptical it's a near-term problem.

However, a lot of people are saying “everything will break with QC, including the entire banking system, so if Bitcoin breaks everything does”. This is…

— Alexander Leishman ???????? (@Leishman) February 20, 2025

In an X post on Feb. 21, Leishman explained that in case with Bitcoin, the security of funds depends entirely on the private key. Once a public key is exposed, a quantum computer could access the funds with ease.

“There is no layer of protection here for any address with a revealed public key. It is, BY FAR, the most ROI+ attack to perform if you have access to a QC no question.”

Alexander Leishman

However, the banking system is more secure, Leishman agues. While a quantum computer could disrupt HTTPS encryption, which is used to secure online communication, attackers would still need to intercept traffic and hijack DNS before gaining access to bank systems.

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Banks also use additional security layers like IP whitelists and symmetric password authentication, which are not vulnerable to quantum computers, Leishman explains.

“Even if you do manage to pop a bank you need to get that money somewhere. Everything is very KYCd with a lot of manual controls around large movements of funds. Good luck moving millions or billions without a human catching something.”

Alexander Leishman

While quantum computing poses a potential threat to Bitcoin, its not something to worry about in the near future. However, recent developments suggest that quantum computing may be closer than previously thought.

On Feb. 19, Microsoft introduced a new quantum chip, claiming it demonstrates quantum computing is “years, not decades” away. The so-called Majorana 1 chip is designed to reduce quantum computings error-prone nature and is supported by a scientific paper slated for publication in Nature.

While theres still some doubt in the tech world about how soon quantum computing will have an impact, companies like Google and IBM are predicting large-scale quantum computers could be up and running by 2033.

Read more: Tether CEO predicts quantum computing could recover lost Bitcoin