El Salvador Splits Bitcoin Holdings Across 14 Wallets Amid Quantum Security Concerns

El Salvador has redistributed its state-held Bitcoin reserves into 14 new wallet addresses in a move aimed at reducing the risks posed by potential advances in quantum ￰0￱ country’s Bitcoin Office announced the transfer on Friday, saying that each address now holds up to 500 ￰1￱ Bitcoin Office explained that when Bitcoin is spent from an address, its public key is revealed, leaving it theoretically vulnerable to quantum ￰2￱ spreading funds across multiple wallets, the government believes it has added a layer of protection should quantum technology ever reach the point where it could crack elliptic curve cryptography, the backbone of Bitcoin’s security ￰3￱ Salvador Guarding Against a Quantum Future The decision comes amid growing debate about whether quantum computers could one day undermine Bitcoin’s ￰4￱ Eleven, a quantum research firm, estimated in April that more than 6 million BTC, roughly $650 billion, could be at risk if the technology advances far enough.

Still, the company acknowledged that the threat remains ￰5￱ quantum computers have not managed to break even a 3-bit key using Shor’s algorithm, while Bitcoin private keys are 256 ￰6￱ figures remain skeptical that quantum computing will challenge Bitcoin anytime ￰7￱ Saylor, chairman of MicroStrategy and one of Bitcoin’s most vocal corporate backers, dismissed the concern in June as “hype,” stressing that if the threat became real, the network could simply undergo hardware and software upgrades, much like tech giants and governments routinely ￰8￱ Tensions Still Linger While the redistribution of funds has been largely praised as a prudent step, El Salvador’s broader Bitcoin strategy continues to face international ￰9￱ International Monetary Fund (IMF) report published in July claimed that the country has not made any new Bitcoin purchases since February, raising doubts about the transparency of its public ￰10￱ Bitcoin Office has not addressed the IMF’s claim directly and continues to post updates about Bitcoin acquisitions on its official X ￰11￱ comes against the backdrop of a $1.4 billion funding arrangement El Salvador struck with the IMF in late 2024, which reportedly required the country to scale back its aggressive Bitcoin ￰12￱ details of that agreement remain disputed, with the government showing little sign of retreating from its pro-Bitcoin ￰13￱ Salvador’s latest move highlights both the innovative and controversial aspects of its approach: preparing for technological risks that may be decades away while navigating immediate pressures from international financial institutions.