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Christopher Wood, Jefferies’ Global Head of Equity Strategy, has removed Bitcoin from his flagship ‘Greed & Fear’ model portfolio, citing long-term security concerns linked to advances in quantum computing. Wood replaced a 10% Bitcoin weighting with a split allocation of 5% physical gold and 5% gold-mining equities.
Wood added Bitcoin to the portfolio in December 2020 and increased the allocation in November 2021. In the latest update, he said the quantum issue may not hit Bitcoin’s price in the near term, but it can weaken the long-term ‘store of value’ argument used in pension-style portfolios.
Wood framed the move as a portfolio construction decision rather than a short-term market call. He shifted the full 10% exposure into gold assets with longer track records in institutional portfolios. He split the position between bullion and gold-related equities to balance defensive exposure with equity market participation.
He also referenced performance context around the earlier Bitcoin allocation. The newsletter noted that Bitcoin rose sharply from the initial entry points, while gold also gained over the same span. Wood presented the change as a response to evolving technology risk, not as a reversal driven by recent price action alone.
Wood’s concern centers on the cryptography that secures Bitcoin wallets and authorizes transfers. Today’s conventional computers cannot feasibly break those protections at scale. However, Wood argued that ‘cryptographically relevant’ quantum machines could shorten the time needed to infer private keys from public information, which would raise theft and custody risks.
Developers and security researchers have long discussed this scenario, but the topic has gained more attention as quantum research accelerates. Wood cited an analysis referenced in his note that estimates a meaningful share of existing Bitcoin could face exposure if quantum capabilities reach a level that threatens current public-key systems.
Market participants do not treat quantum computing as an immediate break-glass event for Bitcoin. Several developers have argued that credible quantum risk remains years away and that any network-wide transition would require extensive coordination and time for users to move funds to new, quantum-resistant formats.
At the same time, more firms have started funding ‘post-quantum’ tooling and readiness efforts, which signals that longer-horizon investors now factor the issue into allocation decisions. Wood’s shift highlights that the debate has moved from technical forums into mainstream portfolio strategy, even as the timing and severity remain uncertain.
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