In a November 22, 2025, CNBC interview, VanEck CEO Jan van Eck questioned Bitcoin’s encryption and privacy amid advancing quantum computing, warning his firm could “walk away” if the asset’s core thesis erodes, per CoinDesk. Van Eck highlighted community debates on whether Bitcoin has “enough encryption” against quantum algorithms like Shor’s, which could crack elliptic curve cryptography, exposing wallets and transactions, per Cointelegraph. He stated, “VanEck has been around before Bitcoin. We will walk away if we think the thesis is fundamentally broken,” underscoring long-term viability concerns, per Bitcoinist. BTC traded at $86,204, up 2.4% daily but down 31.6% from its $126,080 ATH on October 6, 2025, per Yahoo Finance.
Van Eck noted Bitcoin’s transparent ledger clashing with rising privacy demands, driving “Bitcoin OGs” to explore Zcash (ZEC) for its zero-knowledge proofs enabling confidential transactions, per TradingView News. Zcash surged over 1,300% in three months amid this demand, per Crypto Breaking News. Van Eck observed, “Everyone can view Bitcoin transactions,” prompting a reevaluation, per Coinpedia. Cryptographer Adam Back estimates meaningful quantum threats are 2–4 decades away, but the discourse is intensifying, per Bitget News. X posts from @arjunkhemani amplified van Eck’s clip, sparking debates on BTC’s future.
Van Eck attributes the bear market to the halving cycle (bearish for 2026), quantum risks, and Zcash’s privacy edge, recommending dollar-cost averaging into downturns, per BitcoinEthereumNews. BTC’s four-year cycle shows limited gains this round, with investors pre-positioning for 2026 volatility, per. VanEck’s spot BTC ETF (HODL) has attracted $1.2B since 2024, but the CEO’s caution signals institutional reevaluation, per. Zcash offers stronger encryption, appealing as a hedge.
Quantum risks could erode confidence by 2030, but developers have time for post-quantum cryptography upgrades, per. IBM-Cisco’s quantum internet project and the PQC market’s $2.84B projection by 2030 highlight proactive efforts, per Bitget News. BTC could reach $150,000 by 2026 if resilient, per Techopedia, but privacy enhancements may boost ZEC to $100, per. Investors should monitor quantum research on arxiv.org and diversify into ZEC or ETH ($4,070), with BTC stop-losses at $80,000, per TradingView. Follow @TheBlock__ on X for updates. Van Eck’s ultimatum underscores the need for evolution, per CoinDesk.
