On October 6, the Quantus team announced the launch of its native token, QTC, on the NEAR Protocol super application, near.com. Users can exchange QTC for 180 different assets across more than 30 blockchain networks.
QTC is now live on https://t.co/SaFYOaGrTo, powered by @near_intents. Swap into QTC from 180+ assets across 30+ chains, including BTC, ETH, SOL, and ZEC. Every swap is confidential by default. Quantum secure encrypted money, now one swap away. https://t.co/tvZcIwDqGj
— Quantus (@QuantusNetwork) October 6, 2026
Additionally, QTC has been integrated into the 1Click Swap API — a programming interface from NEAR Intents that allows third-party wallets and applications to facilitate cross-chain exchanges. Services utilizing this API can offer QTC to their users without needing separate integration with Quantus.
At the time of writing, QTC was trading at approximately $101, having surged over 15% in the past 24 hours.
QTC price dynamics. Source: CoinGecko.Understanding the Quantus Network
The main network for Quantus became operational on September 9. It is a blockchain utilizing a Proof-of-Work mechanism, specifically designed with post-quantum cryptography from the outset.
Quantus is live. Quantum secure encrypted money. Only way to get it is to mine it. Tradable soon. Welcome to Quantus https://t.co/deWs9esXJU
— Quantus (@QuantusNetwork) September 9, 2026
Transactions within the network are signed using the ML-DSA standard, which was approved by NIST in 2024.
Unlike most blockchains that rely on ECDSA and Ed25519 signature schemes, which could theoretically be compromised by sufficiently powerful quantum computers, Quantus was built to counter such threats from the very beginning, according to its developers.
Quantus is characterized in its documentation as a blockchain for value preservation, with a capped supply of 21 million QTC tokens. There are no other assets or smart contracts on the network, necessitating an external channel for exchanging QTC for assets on other networks, fulfilled by NEAR Intents.
The team reported that following the mainnet launch, users could only obtain QTC through mining. Over 7,000 GPUs connected to the network immediately after launch, and by the end of September, the hash rate had reached 24 TH/s, with daily active accounts ranging from 650 to 1,100.
NEAR Integration Explained
NEAR Intents operates on an intent-based model where users specify the desired outcome of a transaction, and independent executors determine the route and liquidity for the deal.
Accounts on NEAR used to purchase QTC can be secured with ML-DSA signatures, although post-quantum protection is not yet comprehensive.
According to the NEAR roadmap, transitioning consensus to post-quantum signatures is planned for the latter half of 2027, with support for incoming cross-chain transactions to begin in 2027 as well.
Research is still ongoing for quantum-resistant threshold signatures for outgoing cross-chain operations.
Documentation from Quantus describes the connection with NEAR through threshold MPC signatures, with the implementation of the MPC node and integration with NEAR Intents listed as still in development, while the audit of the threshold signatures by Hashcloak remains incomplete.
In May, the Quantus developers expressed concerns regarding the crypto market's preparedness for a transition to post-quantum cryptography, highlighting potential vulnerabilities for wallets, exchanges, custodians, validators, bridges, and governance systems.
In August, Quantus CEO Christopher Smith warned that the first successful quantum attack might resemble a typical compromise of a private key and could go unnoticed. He estimated that the probability of such a threat emerging by 2028 is around 50%.
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