Satoshi Nakamoto – the man of mystery. Being interested in cryptocurrencies, you have surely come across this name more than once – a pseudonym without a face. Who is the creator of Bitcoin and the technological revolution? The true identity of the creator is unknown. For more than a decade, the author of Bitcoin has been hiding from the world. Why? We do not know the answer to this question either. Although there are many unknowns in this matter, we can be sure of one thing – Satoshi still owns Bitcoin.
Satoshi Nakamoto – creator of Bitcoin
On October 31, 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto revealed a Bitcoin whitepaper called the manifesto. It was titled “Bitcoin: a peer-to-peer electronic cash system”. Although many years have passed since its publication, it still appears on bitcoin.org. Wanting to decentralize the exchange between individuals, he developed a complex protocol that allows the exchange of digital currency without an intermediary, thanks to blockchain and smart contracts. If you are just starting your adventure with cryptocurrencies, you should definitely take a peek at this document. It allows you to understand what led the author to create it.
What is important – Satoshi did not invent blockchain. He developed a decentralized currency that was based on blockchains. In 2009, Bitcoin was officially launched. However, long before that date, the mysterious pseudonym appeared on forums or emails. In 2011, communication broke down.
Satoshi Nakamoto – a man of mystery. Who was he? Is he still alive? Let’s break down this topic into its prime factors.
Satoshi Nakamoto – a person, group of people or…?
There is not enough evidence to support either theory. The dominant opinion on the Internet is that Nakamoto was a specific person. You will also find supporters who believe that a team of computer scientists, cryptographers, and cyberpunks is behind the creation of Bitcoin.
Based on the nickname, it is said that Satoshi was a Japanese born on April 5, 1975. On the other hand, considering his level of English, which was very high, he could have come from an English-speaking country. Communication with the creator took place in European times, so we can assume that he did not live in Japan.
Surprisingly, inside the genesis block, Nakamoto left a message that stated: “The Times newspaper January 3, 2009: UK Chancellor to rescue banks for second time”, when the UK government bailed out the banks. Many people have interpreted this as an assessment of the current monetary system, while others see it as a time marker. This message has also been the subject of theories regarding the identity or location of Satoshi Nakamoto, assuming he was from London.
Another theory portrays Nakamoto as a young college student who was frightened by what he did for the economy. Where did this concept come from? Satoshi was very intelligent. It is known that he knew economics and was an above-average mathematician. He programmed; however, his code was not professional. After discovering the consequences his actions would have on the world economy, he got scared and completely disassociated himself from cryptocurrencies.
You will even hear that Satoshi Nakamoto is a government organization. The truthfulness of this thesis is supported by the nickname used. Satoshi from Japanese means “wise / sober thinking”, naka translates as “inside / relationship”. Moto means “origin / foundation”. Putting the words together, we get the phrase “Think soberly inside the foundation”.
Theorists also linked Nakamoto’s identity to the Silk Road exchange. It was the largest drug exchange. Transactions were carried out using cryptocurrencies, among other things. Why this strange connection? On March 20, 2013, a transaction was made for 1000 BTC. The cryptocurrencies went into a wallet set up just 4 days after the launch of Bitcoin. There was also speculation that Ross Ulbricht – the founder of Silk Road – was the creator of Bitcoin, but he denied this insinuation. Could Ross have very well-known Nakamoto, who funded the creation of the entire exchange? The matter cleared up relatively quickly. The owner of the mysterious account was Dustin Trammell, and he used Silk Road as an intermediary for illegal transactions. Dustin also denied speculation that he was the creator of the flagship cryptocurrency. And with that, we have once again failed to solve the mystery swirling around Nakamoto.
Well, as many supporters, as many theories. Do we know anything for sure about his biography? Yes! During the years of his activity and bitcoin creation, Nakamoto actively participated in forums related to bitcoin. He believed in his project and improved it all the time. He was active until mid-2010, while in April 2011, the creator vanished without a trace. His last words sent to one of the developers were: “I’m busy with other things now”.
The real Satoshi – the candidates
Most of us would like to be the real Satoshi. It comes with recognition, fame and, let’s not deny it, money. For a decade, discussions about his true identity have not been silent. There have been several acceptable candidates:
Craig Wright
In 2015, Craig Wright publicly announced that he was the creator of Bitcoin. His claims received support from some well-known figures in the Bitcoin community, including members of the Bitcoin Foundation and the developers themselves. Nevertheless, as many supporters as skeptics. In 2019, an Australian computer scientist and businessman even filed a copyright claim for the white paper and original Bitcoin code.
It seems that the whole case will finally be brought to an end by a landmark ruling in the UK by Judge James Mellor. On March 14, 2024, the court dismissed Craig Wright’s nearly decade-old claim that he was Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin.
The judge concluded the proceedings with the following statement:
“Dr. Wright is not the author of the white paper on Bitcoin. Dr. Wright is not the person who adopted or acted under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto between 2008 and 2011. Dr. Wright is not the person who created the Bitcoin system […] he is not the author of the initial versions of the Bitcoin software […].”
The ruling came after a protracted legal battle between Wright and the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), a coalition of leading cryptocurrency companies that filed a case against Wright in 2023, seeking to prevent Wright from asserting his alleged rights to Bitcoin.
Nick Szabo
Computer scientist, creator of “Bit Gold.” He was known long before Bitcoin was created. The way he spoke and the hours of activity were very similar to Satoshi’s communication. Hence, he became another potential candidate. Nick denied being Nakamoto, but the cryptocurrency community was not entirely convinced by his assertions.
Dorian Nakamoto
The name and his background: Japanese-American – already implied a lot. Moreover, what is interesting – after his birth, his real name was Satoshi. For many years, he used to live in the neighbourhood of Hal Finney. He worked in the technology and financial industries. In one interview, he confirmed that he was the one who created Bitcoin. However, he quickly denied his words, claiming that he had misunderstood the question. Since then, he has maintained that he is not who they think he is.
Hal Finney
An early user of Bitcoin, recipient of the first transaction using it. He was a developer and one of the first cyberpunks. He died in 2014. Despite being the most likely candidate, he always denied it.
Elon Musk
CEO and founder of SpaceX and Tesla. He is suspected of inventing Bitcoin. He himself denies it and points to Nick Szabo as the creator. According to Musk, this is the logical solution to this age-old mystery.
Nakamoto – creator of a technological revolution
Satoshi Nakamoto’s project to decentralize exchange and interaction via the Internet has started a true technological revolution. BTC is now publicly known and is in the spotlight of state and banking institutions. It attracts both individuals and institutional funds, and the anonymity of its creator has played a major role in the development of this interest.
This currency belongs to no one and everyone at the same time. The Proof-of-Work consensus protocol allows every person to become an actor in this network. Bitcoin may have been a failure, but it has managed to overcome all the difficulties.
We hope that the real Satoshi Nakamoto can be found in the near future. It is very likely that Satoshi Nakamoto is a single person, an heir of philosophy. This biggest mystery of the internet and financial world, keeps many people awake at night. It is possible that it will never be solved.
And in your opinion, who is Satoshi Nakamoto? A person, a group, or an organization?
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