Devs Debate Freezing Satoshi’s Quantum Vulnerable BTC

Core developers and CryptoQuant analysts are debating if the network should freeze around one million Bitcoin attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto. This proposal aims to secure $67 Billion against potential theft by future quantum computing systems.

The discussion started on 22 February 2026 within global technical forums as research suggested a shorter timeline for breaking legacy encryption. These talks focus on early addresses that reveal public keys through the older P2PK transaction format.

Some participants oppose the freeze because such actions would compromise the foundational neutrality and immutability of the Bitcoin protocol. They argue that changing consensus rules to lock wallets could create a precedent for future financial censorship.

Engineers suggest using a soft fork to move assets into quantum resistant signatures before high powered hardware becomes available. The community must determine if protecting these coins justifies the risk of altering the network's established property rights.

Vitalik Buterin Backs Major Ethereum Censorship Upgrade

Ethereum developers officially scheduled the controversial FOCIL consensus upgrade for the upcoming Hegota hard fork in late 2026. This technical proposal forces validators to include valid transactions from a randomized list to ensure the network remains truly censorship resistant. Vitalik Buterin noted that these changes effectively treat smart accounts and privacy protocols as first-class citizens.

The new rules mandate that any valid public transaction must be included within a strictly bounded number of blocks. Critics argue that forcing the inclusion of sanctioned addresses could expose global validators to serious legal and regulatory risks. Despite these concerns, developers maintain that protocol-level neutrality is essential for preserving the long-term cypherpunk principles of the decentralized ecosystem.

OpenClaw Enforces Strict Discord Ban On Crypto Mentions

The lead developer of the AI framework OpenClaw recently implemented a zero-tolerance policy for all cryptocurrency discussions on Discord. Peter Steinberger confirmed Saturday that referencing digital assets can result in immediate removal to protect the community from recurring financial scams. This decision follows a fraudulent token launch that briefly reached a market capitalization of $16 million in early February.

Scammers originally exploited an abandoned social handle during a rebrand to promote a fake Solana-based asset to unsuspecting developers. The project has since experienced explosive growth, surpassing 200,000 GitHub stars as programmers build autonomous agents for various software tasks. While industry leaders view crypto as a default payment rail for AI, OpenClaw remains focused on pure software engineering.

Netherlands Orders Polymarket To Cease Illegal Operations

The Netherlands Gambling Authority ordered Polymarket to halt all services for Dutch residents immediately. Regulators determined that the platform offers illegal gambling without a proper license and threatens the integrity of local political elections. Failure to comply will result in weekly fines of $462,000 until the operator effectively blocks access for all national users.

Polymarket continues to argue that its event contracts are financial instruments rather than wagers despite mounting global legal pressure. The platform recently processed a record $13.5 billion in monthly volume as users speculated on various geopolitical and sports outcomes. Dutch officials emphasized that they prioritize consumer protection and systemic integrity over the unregulated growth of new betting technologies.

Data of the Day

Kraken reported that tokenized xStocks have surpassed $25 billion in total transaction volume since their official launch last year. This lifetime total includes $3.5 billion in onchain activity across the Solana, Ethereum, and TON networks, according to Dune's data. Each digital share is fully backed 1:1 by underlying equities held in custody by a regulated and licensed financial institution.

There are currently over 80,000 unique holders managing nearly $450 million in aggregate assets through the xStocks framework. This growth demonstrates a rising demand for permissionless markets that operate without the traditional downtime of centralized stock exchanges. Kraken is also finalizing the acquisition of Backed to solidify its leadership position in the burgeoning real-world asset sector.

More Breaking News

• Elliptic identified five crypto exchanges helping Russia evade international sanctions, with one platform alone processing at least $11 billion in high-volume transactions.
• Bitcoin miner Bitdeer liquidated its entire 943 BTC treasury reserve and sold its weekly production, cutting its corporate holdings to zero.
• BNP Paribas Asset Management launched a blockchain pilot on Ethereum to test the issuance and transfer of tokenized money market fund shares.
• MARA Holdings acquired a 64% stake in French computing firm Exaion to expand into AI and cloud services as mining margins tighten.
• Malaysian authorities arrested 12 police officers accused of extorting $51,000 in cryptocurrency from Chinese nationals during a house raid near Kuala Lumpur.
• A federal judge granted Kalshi a preliminary injunction against Tennessee, ruling its sports event contracts fall under exclusive federal CFTC jurisdiction.
• Polymarket acquired API startup Dome for an undisclosed sum to provide developers with a unified interface for building multi-platform prediction market tools.

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