Bitcoin Quantum Defenses Advance as Solana Slashes Inflation
Bitcoin has made significant strides in preparing for potential quantum threats. Despite skepticism from some in the Bitcoin community, researchers have been working to upgrade the blockchain with new defenses against quantum attacks.
A team at StarkWare successfully tested an experimental transaction on the Bitcoin mainnet using a quantum-resistant signature scheme called Quantum Safe Bitcoin (QSB). The test protected a 10,000-satoshi output during the brief period when public keys are exposed in the mempool. However, each transaction takes hours and costs $150 to $200.
Separately, Blockstream researchers published a proposal for upgrading Bitcoin with the SHRINCS signature scheme. This new scheme is still nine times larger than existing signatures but reduces the size of hash-based post-quantum signatures by about 13.23 times. Jonas Nick from Blockstream Research described it as 'not optimal along every axis' but noted that it's a good trade-off among current options.
Solana validators have approved a proposal to double the network's annual disinflation rate, reducing issuance by 18.9 million SOL over six years. This change is expected to reach Solana's 1.5% terminal inflation rate in about 2.8 years, compared to roughly 5.7 years under the previous schedule.
On a separate note, public advocacy organization Public Citizen claims that US President Donald Trump's digital asset ventures have left investors at least $4.7 billion underwater since 2022. This includes losses from his memecoin Official Trump (TRUMP) and other tokens.