Monero Under Siege: Qubic’s Bold 51% Attack Strategy Using Economic Incentives

• What Is Qubic’s 51% Attack Plan Against Monero?
• Why Is Monero Vulnerable to This Attack?
• What Could Happen If Qubic Succeeds?
• Is This Just a Marketing Ploy for QUBIC?
• How Are Monero and QUBIC’s Prices Reacting?
• What’s Next for Monero?
• FAQs: Qubic vs. Monero

In a high-stakes power play, Qubic—a mining pool operated by IOTA co-founder Sergey Ivancheglo—is attempting to seize control of Monero’s network by offering miners lucrative economic incentives. Since July 2025, Qubic has lured miners with its native QUBIC tokens, sold mined XMR to burn QUBIC (boosting its price), and edged closer to a 51% hashrate dominance. Monero’s $130K daily security budget and RandomX algorithm make it vulnerable, while the community fights back with P2Pool adoption and heightened confirmations. Meanwhile, QUBIC’s price surged 50% in July, raising suspicions this is a publicity stunt. Here’s the full breakdown.

What Is Qubic’s 51% Attack Plan Against Monero?

Qubic isn’t hacking Monero—it’s bribing its way to control. By paying miners in QUBIC tokens instead of XMR, the pool creates a self-reinforcing cycle: miners flock to Qubic for higher profits, increasing its hashrate share. The pool then sells mined XMR to buy and burn QUBIC, artificially inflating its value. This “economic warfare” exploits Monero’s fixed 0.6 XMR block reward and low fees, making it cheaper to attack than bitcoin or Ethereum. As of July 2025, Qubic’s daily cost to dominate is just $7K–$10K above Monero’s $130K security spend—a shockingly low barrier.

Why Is Monero Vulnerable to This Attack?

Monero’s design is both its strength and weakness. The privacy-focused coin uses CPU-mining-friendly RandomX, allowing miners to switch pools instantly for better rewards. However, its modest 30K daily transactions and minimal fees leave little economic incentive to defend the network. Qubic’s strategy capitalizes on this, leveraging Monero’s decentralization against itself. Even worse, Qubic plans to stop reporting its hashrate after July 30, 2025, masking its progress toward 51% control.

What Could Happen If Qubic Succeeds?

A 51% attack WOULD let Qubic rewrite Monero’s transaction history, censor payments, or even force protocol changes. The pool already advises requiring 13 confirmations for transactions—a red flag. In August, Qubic may orphan blocks from rival pools, causing failed transactions. Sergey Ivancheglo frames this as a “benevolent attack” to “protect” Monero, but the community isn’t buying it. As one BTCC analyst noted, “Economic incentives, not code, ultimately govern crypto—and Qubic is playing that game ruthlessly.”

Is This Just a Marketing Ploy for QUBIC?

Evidence suggests Qubic’s real goal is pumping QUBIC’s price. The token jumped 50% in July 2025 after listings on BingX and the end of QSwap’s IPO. By framing the attack as “benevolent,” Qubic garners media attention while burning tokens to create scarcity. Monero’s lack of legal entities also makes it an easy target—no one can sue Qubic for destabilizing it. Still, the risk is real: if Qubic hits 51%, Monero’s privacy promise could collapse.

How Are Monero and QUBIC’s Prices Reacting?

Despite the FUD, Monero rose from $300 to $350 in early July 2025 before settling at $323. QUBIC, however, skyrocketed 50% but remains below its March 2024 all-time high of $0.00010. The disparity hints that traders see Qubic’s move as more hype than substance—for now.

What’s Next for Monero?

The community is pushing miners toward decentralized P2Pool and enabling a “security mode.” But the clock is ticking. If Qubic’s hashrate share keeps growing, Monero may face its biggest crisis yet—one decided not by cryptography, but by cold, hard economics.

FAQs: Qubic vs. Monero

What is a 51% attack?

A 51% attack occurs when a single entity controls most of a blockchain’s mining power, enabling transaction censorship or reversal.

Why is Qubic targeting Monero?

Monero’s low fees, CPU-mining design, and lack of legal oversight make it cheaper and safer to attack than larger coins.

Can Monero survive a 51% attack?

Yes, but it would require urgent protocol changes and miner coordination to dilute Qubic’s hashrate.

How does QUBIC benefit from this?

Token burns and media HYPE drive demand, as seen in its 50% July 2025 price surge.