Binance Founder CZ Proposes Freezing Satoshi’s Bitcoins Over Quantum Threat

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has suggested a hard‑fork or voting mechanism to freeze approximately 1 million bitcoins believed to belong to Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto. He argues that future quantum computers could break the elliptic‑curve signatures that protect these dormant holdings, and proposes a 6‑to‑12‑month migration window for users to move funds to quantum‑resistant addresses before the legacy coins are frozen.

The proposal requires consensus from the Bitcoin community and would represent a significant deviation from Bitcoin’s principles of immutability and censorship resistance. Critics label the move as a potential confiscation of private property and warn it could set a precedent for subjective control over assets. Others note that quantum‑computing threats remain largely theoretical at present, though research into post‑quantum signature schemes is ongoing. The suggestion has sparked a broad debate among developers, investors, and regulators about balancing security with Bitcoin’s foundational ethos.