60 billion USD can destroy Bitcoin? Finance professor: The cost of a BTC "51% Attack" is not that high.

A study by a finance professor at Duke University points out that the risk of a “51% Attack” facing Bitcoin is severely underestimated, with attackers needing only about $6 billion to destroy the Bitcoin network. This article is sourced from an article written by Wall Street Journal and organized, translated, and authored by Foresight News. (Background summary: El Salvador splits 6,285 Bitcoins into 14 wallets: to counter quantum attack threats) (Background supplement: In the face of quantum attacks, should Satoshi Nakamoto's 1.09 million Bitcoins be moved?) A finance professor at Duke University has published a paper warning that the threat of a “51% Attack” on Bitcoin is severely underestimated by the market. Attackers can achieve control over the Bitcoin network within a week by purchasing hardware worth $4.6 billion, investing $1.34 billion in building data centers, and incurring weekly electricity costs of about $130 million. Recent research shows that the threat of a “51% Attack” facing Bitcoin is severely underestimated, with attackers needing only about $6 billion to destroy Bitcoin. On October 9, Duke University finance professor Campbell Harvey warned in his latest research that although Bitcoin and gold are both seen as the darlings of “currency depreciation trades,” the risks facing Bitcoin far exceed those of gold. Attackers can achieve control over the Bitcoin network within a week by purchasing hardware worth $4.6 billion, investing $1.34 billion in building data centers, and incurring weekly electricity costs of about $130 million. Overnight, Bitcoin's rebound failed, plummeting about 3.3% from its daily high. By shorting Bitcoin through the derivation market, attackers can make huge profits when the price of Bitcoin crashes, enough to cover the attack costs. Harvey emphasizes: You can destroy Bitcoin's value with $6 billion. Although this kind of attack sounds overly technical, its credibility is very high. Matt Prusak, president of a U.S. Bitcoin company, believes that this concern is exaggerated, stating that accumulating and deploying mining equipment takes years, and shorting requires a huge collateral, with exchanges possibly suspending suspicious trading. 51% Attack: The Fundamental Threat to Bitcoin A 51% Attack refers to the situation where a single party controls more than half of the computing power of the blockchain network. Once successful, attackers can tamper with the ledger, forge transactions, and even perform a “double spend attack”—where the same digital token is reused. In contrast, gold does not have similar systemic risks. Furthermore, the current prosperity of the Bitcoin derivation market provides an economic incentive for a 51% Attack. Harvey's paper points out that traders can establish short positions with funds less than 10% of the average daily trading volume, generating huge profits that can cover the attack costs. This profit mechanism greatly enhances the economic feasibility of the attack, especially considering that the attack costs only account for 0.26% of the total value of the Bitcoin network, far lower than many investors' expectations. Harvey emphasizes: The low cost of attack is a serious issue for the future feasibility and security of Bitcoin. Harvey further points out that such attacks are likely to occur overseas, as many regions lack effective measures to prevent market manipulation. Industry Disagreement on Attack Risks Despite Harvey's serious warnings, there are differing views in the industry. Prusak believes that the economic feasibility is not sufficient to support the theory of a 51% Attack, noting that accumulating and deploying enough mining equipment takes years, which is not feasible in reality. Prusak also emphasizes that shorting Bitcoin requires huge collateral, and if exchanges suspect manipulation, they may suspend trading, preventing attackers from cashing in on their profits. Other blockchains have indeed suffered 51% attacks and survived. Bitcoin forked coin Bitcoin Gold and Ethereum Classic have both been attacked, but they are smaller blockchains with lower miner support, making them more susceptible to manipulation. Related Reports Trump: The U.S. successfully “attacked three Iranian nuclear facilities,” breaking a half-century red line, Bitcoin flash crashes to $100,866. MicroStrategy rebuts “Bitcoin quantum attack,” Michael Saylor: Worrying for nothing; if true, Google and Microsoft would fall first. Is PoS safer? Developers: The cost to attack Ethereum far exceeds Bitcoin's $10 billion (Can $6 billion destroy Bitcoin? Finance professor: The cost of BTC's “51% attack” is not that high). This article was first published in BlockTempo, the most influential blockchain news media.