Chinese scientists claim to have created a new blockchain storage system that they say can resist attacks from quantum computers.
The system is important because quantum computers could make current encryption methods useless.
The team’s solution, known as EQAS (Efficient Quantum-resistant Authentication Storage), introduces a new framework to safeguard blockchain systems against the immense computational power of next-generation quantum machines.
The development, reported by the South China Morning Post (SCMP), was published in the Chinese-language Journal of Software in early June.
New blockchain tech to withstand quantum threats
EQAS is designed around post-quantum cryptographic tools, diverging sharply from conventional methods that rely on complex mathematical problems.
These older systems, such as those based on factoring large prime numbers or discrete logarithms, are highly vulnerable to quantum algorithms capable of solving them in seconds.
“Many blockchain systems today still depend on cryptographic techniques that will collapse under quantum-level computation,” Wu Tong, associate professor at the University of Science and Technology Beijing, who led the study alongside researchers from the Beijing Institute of Technology and Guilin University of Electronic Technology, told SCMP.
The core of EQAS uses SPHINCS, a hash-based digital signature method developed in 2015.
Unlike traditional signatures, SPHINCS doesn’t rely on number theory but instead uses hash functions, which are considered more resilient against quantum attacks.
This adjustment improves security and makes it easier to manage device keys. It is especially important in decentralized networks where many nodes work independently to verify transactions.
EQAS also brings a new structure. It keeps data storage separate from verification. It uses a dynamic tree to create proofs and a supertree framework to check them.
The research team highlighted that this modular design is more scalable and efficient, which helps reduce server load.
Securing future digital networks
In performance tests, EQAS demonstrated clear advantages over current systems.
Authentication and data storage tasks took around 40 seconds to complete, well below the average 180 seconds required for Ethereum blockchain confirmations, which currently depend on 12 blocks at 15 seconds each.
Wu said that existing blockchains’ reliance on classical encryption methods was “no longer sustainable” in the face of quantum threats.
“We must rethink how we secure decentralized systems over the long term,” she added.
While quantum computers capable of breaking blockchain encryption are not yet widely available, the risk is no longer hypothetical.
According to Wang Chao, a professor at Shanghai University who specializes in quantum computing but was not involved in the study, the threat is best viewed as a matter of time.
“It’s like knowing a wooden gate will burn if there’s a fire,” Wang told SCMP. “You don’t wait for the fire, you replace it with stone. That’s what these researchers are doing.”
As blockchain becomes more deeply embedded in global finance, logistics, and identity systems, quantum-resilient frameworks like EQAS may soon shift from theoretical safeguards to critical infrastructure.
The EQAS framework represents one of the first serious Chinese efforts to fuse blockchain architecture with post-quantum cryptography.
It could help position China as a leader in securing future digital networks against the next great wave of cyber threats if it is scalable in real-world deployments.
