NEAR Plans to Deploy Post-Quantum Consensus by End of 2027

NEAR is rebuilding its security model to address the threat posed by quantum computers to existing cryptocurrency signature systems. The project is set to begin in the second quarter of 2026, with the goal of achieving post-quantum consensus by the end of 2027. The first change will be the integration of ML-DSA (Dilithium) into the protocol, allowing users to store assets and grant permissions using keys that are resistant to quantum threats, with protection extending to assets issued on other blockchains. According to NEAR's technical leads Anton Astafiev and Mally Anderson, the next step is to reduce the space cost required for post-quantum signatures, which is significantly higher than traditional solutions. Near One is also evaluating FN-DSA (Falcon), but a decision on the implementation timeline has not yet been made. Validator accounts can now use post-quantum keys to approve transactions and confirm staking, but consensus still relies on the Edison curve, so the keys for validators and chunk producers will also need to change. Near One views this transition as one of the largest protocol upgrades since the mainnet, believing that ML-DSA is currently too large and costly, whereas Falcon is smaller and faster but not yet mature enough for production-level consensus. NEAR also aims to maintain the ongoing operation of Chain Signatures, NEAR Intent, and OmniBridge during 2026 and 2027, but currently lacks a solution for post-quantum threshold signatures.