NEAR Leads Blockchain Revolution with Post-Quantum Key Support
NEAR Protocol has become the first major blockchain to activate post-quantum key support. This upgrade, which went live on its mainnet on July 20, 2026, implements the NIST-standard ML-DSA-65 lattice-based signature scheme, also known as FIPS-204.
The new feature allows users to rotate their account keys to a quantum-resistant scheme with a single on-chain transaction, without requiring asset migration or a new wallet address. This is possible due to NEAR's account model, which was designed for cryptographic flexibility when the mainnet launched in 2020.
The upgrade protects not only NEAR-native assets but also those from over 30 other blockchains, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, through Chain Signatures and NEAR Intents. The latter enables cross-chain operations through a declarative framework, which now inherits the quantum-resistant properties of the new signing scheme.
NEAR co-founder Illia Polosukhin has emphasized the importance of proactive measures given the pace of quantum computing advances, framing the quantum-resistance work in the context of NEAR's broader vision for multi-chain infrastructure and an emerging 'agent economy' where autonomous AI agents transact on-chain.
The team is now working on efficiency improvements for post-quantum signatures, which are notably larger than their classical counterparts. The next target is securing NEAR's consensus mechanism with post-quantum cryptography by the end of 2027, currently relying on classical signature schemes.