Adam Back says Bitcoin’s post-quantum shift may reveal true Satoshi stash

Back said at Paris Blockchain Week that Bitcoin’s post-quantum shift may reveal the true size of the stash held by Satoshi Nakamoto, estimated at between 500,000 and 1 million BTC.

Blockstream CEO Adam Back said Thursday that a future post-quantum migration of Bitcoin could help clarify how many coins linked to Satoshi Nakamoto remain accessible, because any owner wanting to protect vulnerable holdings would need to move them to a new address format.

Speaking at Paris Blockchain Week, Back said such a migration would likely give users ample time to move funds and argued that coins left unmoved after that process could reasonably be treated as lost.

“This migration to post-quantum address format may tell us how many of those coins [Satoshi] still has,” said Back, adding that the pseudonymous creator has an estimated 500,000 to 1 million Bitcoin (BTC).

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