Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) faces a potential long-term threat from quantum computing, but the developer community already recognizes the risk and has potential solutions, according to VanEck digital assets research head Matthew Sigel.

Can Bitcoin Beat Quantum Risk?

Sigel told CNBC in an interview on Thursday that concerns about increasingly powerful computing systems breaking existing cryptography represent a legitimate risk for Bitcoin.

"Yes, it’s a risk," Sigel said, adding that the Bitcoin community has already "recognized the scope of the issue."

Developers and researchers are working toward a framework for upgrading the network, but the challenge is that Bitcoin’s decentralized governance can make major upgrades slower than changes at a conventional technology company.

Sigel said Bitcoin upgrades move slowly because its decentralized governance lacks a CEO directing developers.

Still, he noted that technological paths do exist to make Bitcoin quantum resistant.

Why BTC Leverage Looks Different

Sigel also pushed back against concerns that the crypto market currently faces the same hidden leverage risks that contributed to the failures of FTX, Genesis, BlockFi and Celsius during the previous cycle.

He said much of today’s leverage is more visible, including futures exposure through the CME and debt issued by public companies through regulated U.S. capital markets.

Current leverage doesn’t present a systemic risk, Sigel said.

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