Quantus CEO: Two EIPs Could Add Post-Quantum Security to Ethereum (ETH) Before 2029

EIP-8130 and EIP-8355 Cover Account Keys

If the design Quantus chief executive Christopher Smith lays out holds up, EVM-compatible blockchains could shield user accounts from quantum computers years before Ethereum (ETH) itself does. Smith, co-founder and CEO of the quantum-safe network Quantus, set out the case in a research paper published on Thursday, arguing that two Ethereum improvement proposals, EIP-8130 and EIP-8355, would give any EVM chain optional post-quantum transaction security without waiting for the end of the decade. The paper argues about cryptography, not markets: nothing in it touches the Ethereum price directly, and any market reaction would run through sentiment on network security rather than through supply or fees.

The research paper describes the shortest practical path to post-quantum authentication Smith sees: a flexible account keystore built on EIP-8130, combined with native verification of quantum-resistant signatures through EIP-8355. EIP-8130, developed through work on Base, lets an account register and rotate authenticators without changing its address. Smith likens the model to changing an email password while keeping the address: a wallet could start on its current ECDSA key and later attach an ML-DSA post-quantum key. EIP-8355 adds built-in verification for ML-DSA signatures, including the higher NIST security levels meant for keys that stay in service for years. Together, the proposals would cover user accounts and privileged infrastructure such as bridge keys, sequencer keys and admin keys, letting wallets, exchanges and network operators adopt new signature systems while keeping the addresses their users already know. "What we propose is something blockchain maintainers can implement themselves today," Smith said, adding that the changes mainly cover transaction authorization and, in some cases, consensus.

What the Proposals Leave Out

Smith's paper deliberately separates account security from the harder protocol problems. Validator signatures, KZG blob commitments, cross-chain bridges and pairing-based zero-knowledge proofs all need further work, and chains that run their own validators would also need new deposit and key-registration systems. KZG blob commitments and pairing-based zero-knowledge proofs both rest on constructions that post-quantum research treats as vulnerable, which is why the paper routes around them rather than through them. Pure rollups, a Layer 2 design that inherits Ethereum's proof-of-stake consensus, could move faster, but they still depend on Ethereum (ETH) itself for quantum-safe verification of any proof submitted to mainnet. Smith is candid about maturity: the proposal remains a design paper rather than a tested implementation, although most of the EIPs it discusses have already been implemented on some networks. "By offering post-quantum signatures but making them optional, chains can update without waiting for applications to adapt," he said.

Protocol support alone does not protect existing wallets. Exchanges and custodians can migrate accounts on their clients' behalf, but self-custody users may have to generate new seed phrases and move assets to post-quantum addresses, a process closer to a token swap or hard fork than to a routine software update. Ethereum has absorbed large transitions before, as our breakdown of the Ethereum 1.0 to 2.0 upgrade shows, but the quantum turn touches key cryptography rather than consensus mechanics alone. The contrast with the base protocol's own timetable is where the paper lands its practical point: Ethereum's roadmap targets a quantum-resistant layer 1 around December 2029, a step within Ethereum's broader upgrade plans, the same horizon as the Ethereum Foundation's 10,000 TPS target for 2029. Smith's proposal is narrower in scope but, if implemented, could go live far sooner, securing account authorization immediately while the harder task of making every layer quantum-resistant continues.

Account Keys First, Consensus Later

The narrow scope is the design choice doing the work here. Account keys, sequencer keys and bridge admin keys move the funds, and signatures posted on-chain stay public forever, so key longevity is the part of the quantum problem users can act on without a protocol-wide rewrite. If EIP-8130 and EIP-8355 ship as optional modules, chains that adopt them early would extend protection to the highest-value keys first while leaving consensus untouched. Whatever the timeline, three things hold either way: adoption depends on wallet and exchange support, self-custody migration falls on users, and Ethereum's quantum-resistant layer 1 target stays at December 2029.