Hong Kong conference highlights Bitcoin’s quantum computing challenge
Crypto leaders gathered at Cointelegraph’s LONGITUDE event in Hong Kong this week, and the conversation kept circling back to two main themes: Bitcoin’s vulnerability to quantum computing and the shifting regulatory landscape in the United States. The conference, hosted with crypto exchange OneBullEx, brought together industry figures who seemed genuinely concerned about these issues.
Justin Sun kicked things off with a fireside chat that touched on artificial general intelligence. He made a point about making blockchain accessible to AGI systems, which I think reflects how the industry is trying to anticipate future technological shifts. But the real meat of the discussion came later during the panel sessions.
Quantum computing emerges as serious Bitcoin concern
The quantum computing panel revealed some interesting tensions. Charles Edwards from Capriole Investments took a pretty stark position, suggesting that Bitcoin’s value should be discounted until the quantum resistance problem gets solved. He pointed to ETF issuers adding quantum risk disclaimers as evidence that this isn’t just theoretical anymore.
“If you just look at the data, 2025 should have been a great year for Bitcoin,” Edwards noted, but quantum fears changed that trajectory. It’s interesting how quickly this went from academic discussion to market impact.
Not everyone shared the same level of concern though. Matthew Roszak seemed less worried about the practical implications, while Akshat Vaidya acknowledged the threat but expected a coordinated industry response. The diversity of opinions here shows that the quantum question is still evolving.
US regulatory environment shows signs of improvement
The discussion around US regulations felt more optimistic, perhaps surprisingly so. Panelists noted that the political climate has shifted since the last administration, with the SEC and CFTC apparently coordinating better than before.
Craig Salm from Grayscale mentioned the previous “turf war” between regulators, which created a lot of uncertainty. The fact that they’re now working together suggests something has changed at a fundamental level.
Sean McHugh’s perspective was particularly telling. He moved to Dubai specifically for regulatory clarity, but even he acknowledged that the US situation might be improving. The CLARITY Act hasn’t passed yet, but there’s a sense that momentum is building.
Infrastructure readiness remains a question mark
When the conversation turned to whether crypto infrastructure can handle trillion-dollar institutional flows, the answers were more cautious. A.J. Warner from Offchain Labs was pretty direct: “I would say probably not yet.”
Joanita Titan from Monad Foundation echoed this, noting that while billion-dollar transactions are manageable, trillion-dollar scale presents different challenges. Warner pointed to network scalability, resiliency, and user experience as the main bottlenecks.
It’s worth noting that despite these concerns, there was an underlying optimism about the industry’s future. The market volatility at the end of 2025 didn’t seem to dampen spirits too much.
The LONGITUDE events will continue through 2026 with stops in New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi. Each location will probably bring its own regulatory and technological perspectives to these ongoing conversations.
