Coinbase outlines Bitcoin post-quantum migration priorities for crypto sector

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Coinbase Bitcoin post-quantum

Highlights

Coinbase advocates for flexible post-quantum Bitcoin signature frameworks—such as P2MR, BIP-360, and P2TRv2—to allow phased updates without full network redesign.
Coinbase proposes staged wallet upgrades and a 1-of-2 spending path model, enabling funds to be accessed via both classical and post-quantum keys during migration.
For institutional custody, Coinbase highlights the need for post-quantum options compatible with MPC-based systems and warns about forgery risks in stateful signature models.

Technical framework for a multi-year transition

As reported by The Block, citing Coinbase, the company favors flexible technical designs for Bitcoin's post-quantum migration rather than a narrow focus on selecting a single new signature scheme. The exchange says protecting the network requires solutions that cover both exposed and newly created funds, fit within Bitcoin's limited block space, preserve validation by full nodes, work with institutional custody systems and remain usable for ordinary wallets.

Coinbase says post-quantum output designs should separate the container from the signature scheme so systems can be introduced, replaced or supplemented without a full redesign. It points to P2MR, BIP-360, and P2TRv2 as approaches that appear to offer that flexibility.

The company also backs staged protection, under which active wallets could adopt a post-quantum-capable or hybrid construction before the community settles any final policy on legacy signatures. One option it describes is a 1-of-2 design that gives the same funds two spending paths, one using a classical ECDSA or Schnorr key and one using a post-quantum key.

Custody and network implications for Bitcoin

Coinbase says support for stateful signatures should be paired with a stateless alternative, arguing that state mismanagement in stateful systems can create forgery risks. It also identifies multiparty computation, or MPC, compatibility as an important requirement for institutional custody, saying at least one viable post-quantum option should work well with MPC-based security models.

The exchange, which says it holds 5% of the total bitcoin supply, adds that questions around abandoned or inaccessible coins remain difficult but should be debated in parallel with technical work on post-quantum signatures. Coinbase says early preparation matters because any Bitcoin consensus changes and broader ecosystem migration could take years, and it maintains that the cryptocurrency can remain trusted in a post-quantum environment if the transition is handled carefully.

Our earlier article examined Kraken’s decision to delay its planned IPO until at least Q2 2027 while continuing to expand its business through acquisitions and growing revenues and funded accounts. It also outlined Kraken’s push into regulated token sales via Kraken Launch, as potential U.S. rules such as the SEC’s proposed Reg-CA could create a clearer, disclosure-driven framework for crypto fundraising.

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