FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: May 14, 2026
BNB Chain, the leading L1 blockchain ecosystem, has published a new research report evaluating how BNB Smart Chain (BSC) could migrate its core cryptographic systems to quantum‑resistant alternatives. The report is a forward‑looking exercise in infrastructure resilience, not a response to any immediate threat.
Why This Research Matters Now
Quantum computing is not yet capable of breaking the cryptography that protects today's blockchain networks. But the industry knows that waiting until the threat is real would be too late. BNB Chain's report takes a measured, early look at what a migration to post‑quantum cryptography would actually involve, technically, operationally, and at scale.
The research focuses on replacing traditional cryptographic methods used across BSC with quantum‑resistant alternatives. Two approaches are examined in depth: ML‑DSA‑44 for transaction signatures, and pqSTARK aggregation for validator consensus. Both are grounded in standards that have already been evaluated by the broader cryptography research community.
What the Testing Actually Found
The findings are honest about the trade‑offs involved. Post‑quantum readiness is technically achievable today, but it does not come without cost. When ML‑DSA‑44 signatures were applied, individual transaction size grew from 110 bytes to roughly 2.5 kilobytes. Block size expanded from around 110 kilobytes to approximately 2 megabytes. As a result, native transfer throughput dropped from 4,973 transactions per second down to 2,997.
The report is clear that the main bottleneck is not the speed of signature verification itself. The real challenge is the larger data size of post‑quantum transactions and blocks, which increases the bandwidth required to propagate information across regions. That is a network infrastructure problem as much as a cryptography one.
Where pqSTARK Holds Up Well
Not every finding pointed to a performance drop. On the consensus side, pqSTARK aggregation performed well. Validator signatures were compressed at a ratio of roughly 43 to 1, which helped keep the overhead at the consensus layer manageable even with larger individual signature sizes. This is a meaningful result, it shows that parts of a post‑quantum migration can be handled efficiently with the right tools.
What Is Still Out of Scope
The report is careful to acknowledge what it does not yet cover. Post‑quantum replacements for peer‑to‑peer network handshakes and KZG commitments, both important components of the broader BSC stack, fall outside the current scope. BNB Chain notes that addressing those areas would require wider coordination across the ecosystem and further dedicated research.
A Research Step, Not a Deployment Plan
BNB Chain has been transparent that this report is exploratory in nature. It maps out a technically credible path for a future migration, identifies where the real engineering challenges sit, and sets the stage for more detailed work to follow. For a network operating at BSC's scale, getting ahead of quantum risk, even years before it becomes a practical concern, is exactly the kind of infrastructure thinking that long‑term security demands.
About BNB Chain
BNB Chain is one of the largest and most active blockchain ecosystems in the world. With high throughput, low transaction costs, and full EVM compatibility, it powers scalable applications across finance, gaming, and the broader Web3 economy.
Official Channels
Website: bnbchain.org
Media Contact
Press Team, BNB Chain
