BTQ Deploys First Working BIP 360 Implementation on Bitcoin Quantum Testnet
BTQ Technologies announced Thursday that the first working implementation of Bitcoin Improvement Proposal 360 (BIP 360) is now live on the Bitcoin Quantum testnet v0.3.0. This release moves BIP 360 beyond theory into a live testing environment, allowing developers, miners, and researchers to experiment with quantum-resistant transactions on a separate blockchain designed to simulate a post-quantum world.
BIP 360 introduces a new transaction format called Pay-to-Merkle-Root (P2MR), which restructures how transaction data is committed on-chain. The design removes the need to expose public keys during certain transaction paths, a feature that could become critical if quantum computers advance enough to break current cryptographic protections. "BIP 360 represents the Bitcoin community's most significant step toward quantum resistance and we've turned it from a proposal into running code," said Olivier Roussy Newton, CEO of BTQ Technologies.
BIP 360 and P2MR: Technical Details and Compatibility
The P2MR format enhances quantum resistance while maintaining compatibility with key scaling features on Bitcoin's roadmap. According to BTQ, P2MR preserves scripting capabilities that underpin Lightning, BitVM, and Ark, while eliminating the key-path spend mechanism introduced with Taproot that could expose public keys to quantum attacks. The testnet includes full wallet tooling for creating, funding, signing, and broadcasting P2MR transactions, making the upgrade immediately testable rather than remaining a purely academic proposal.
Quantum Testnet Features and Progress
The Bitcoin Quantum testnet currently includes more than 50 miners and has processed over 100,000 blocks. BTQ's broader goal is to accelerate experimentation around quantum-resistant infrastructure amid growing concern over future cryptographic risks. The testnet launched from a new genesis block with its own asset and ruleset; it does not share Bitcoin's ledger or balances, and users must opt in rather than automatically inherit the upgrade.
Quantum Resistance Challenges: Consensus and Social Hurdles
Christopher Tam, BTQ's head of innovation, described the coordination problem as "a social problem," pointing to the difficulty of coordinating change across a decentralized network with entrenched stakeholders. Even with a working implementation, BIP 360 addresses only part of the quantum threat. Tam noted that while the proposal can help secure future transactions, it cannot retroactively protect older addresses that may already have exposed public keys.
Researchers widely expect that sufficiently advanced quantum computers could eventually break the elliptic-curve cryptography securing Bitcoin, though the timeline remains uncertain. For now, BTQ's testnet serves as an early proving ground. Whether its work translates into changes on Bitcoin itself may depend less on code—and more on consensus.