Cryptocurrencies have revolutionized the finance industry and the way people perceive the concept of money. Digital assets that use cryptography to secure transactions and creation, cryptocurrencies are the first form of decentralized currency meaning no bank or middleman controls its use.
One of the best-known forms of cryptocurrency isbitcoin. Created in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto, bitcoin is the first (and currently most valuable) cryptocurrency in the world. December 2017 saw the highest recorded value of the currency at more than $19,000. While the price of a single bitcoin has since fallen to around $10,000, even that is incredibly impressive considering bitcoin was only worth $1,000 at the start of the year.
Unlike other forms of currency, bitcoin is not backed by any central organization (like a bank or country) or by a physical item (like gold). It sits atop a public ledgerblockchain, where a highly sophisticated mathematical formula creates scarcity and allows users to mine portions of the currency.
Creator of bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, is also credited with the invention of the first blockchain database, which set the foundation for more forms of cryptocurrency to emerge like Ethereum and Litecoin. However, despite the fact that Nakamoto is such an important figure in the world of modern finance, not much is known about the elusive cryptocurrency creator.
Satoshi Nakamoto is believed to be a Japanese-born man in his 40s, but the thing is, no one really knows for sure. Whether Nakamoto is a man, woman, or group of individuals is unknown as well, because the mysterious creator has somehow remained anonymous despite the rising popularity of the cryptocurrencies that Nakamoto helped create.
Which begs the questions: Where did the name Satoshi Nakamoto come from if no one actually knows who this person is? Even though the name Satoshi Nakamoto is being used a placeholder until the real creator(s) come forward, the name itself certainly didnt show up randomly.
An online profile under the name Satoshi Nakamoto was first used on the P2P Foundation website in 2008, a peer-to-peer networking site where the first papers on bitcoin were released. Another account under the same name released Version 0.1 of the bitcoin software on Sourceforge in 2009. Its clear that whether or not Satoshi Nakamoto is the cryptocurrency creators actual name or not, its the name they want us to know them by.
Nakamoto also communicated with users via email for a few years after the softwares release, but as not been involved with bitcoin since 2011. Nakamotos anonymity hasnt stopped people from trying to figure out their true identity. A feature in Newsweek, which was released back in 2014, claimed to have discovered the true identity of Nakamoto, and pointed to a retired Japanese-American man living in California named Dorian Prentice Satoshi Nakamoto.
Dorian Nakamoto denied any role in the creation of bitcoin and says that he is not Satoshi Nakamoto, but some people werent convinced. The day after the Newsweek piece ran, a comment from the original Satoshi Nakamoto on P2P posted simply I am not Dorian Nakamoto.
Another feature, this time in The New York Times, claimed the creator of bitcoin was an American man of Hungarian descent named Nick Szabo. While Szabos career and interest in bitcoin might point to his involvement in the creation of the first cryptocurrency, he has denied that he is Satoshi Nakamoto, so the trail runs cold again.
But the search for Satoshi Nakamoto has posed more questions, like what the unmasking of the bitcoin creator would actually mean for the future of the currency and cryptocurrencies as a whole.
Many people dont seem to care who Nakamoto is, and unless Nakamoto one day decides to step out from the shadows, there isnt really much we can do to find out their identity and probably not much to be gained from it either.
Bitcoin hasnt and never existed in a vacuum. It wasnt something that suddenly showed up out of the blue, but was created by building off the ideas of multiple people over several decades. And while Satoshi Nakamoto helped push the industry to new limits, they werent the only person/people capable of doing so.
Satoshi Nakamoto has been instrumental in the cryptocurrency market for sure, but they also havent really been involved in it in any meaningful way since 2010. Most of the open-source code has been rewritten by a group of programmers whose identities are known,drawing focus away from Nakamoto. So while it might be interested in finally learn who Satoshi Nakamoto really is, it wouldnt likely have a big impact.
However, despite their anonymity, Satoshi Nakamoto is estimated to be worth upwards of $20 billion (although the exact number varies widely from $6-20 billion, but theyre still a millionaire whichever way you spin it) and could be the 44th richest person in the world, according to Forbes.
Knowing who holds that much money (5% of the entire bitcoin stash) could definitely have lasting implications, but wont likely affect the future of cryptocurrencies as a whole.
So for now the identity of the father of cryptocurrency will remain a mystery. But bitcoin and other currencies like it will continue to have lasting impacts on money for a very long time.
Follow this link:
Who is Satoshi Nakamoto, Cryptocurrency's Elusive Creator ...
- Satoshi Nakamoto Definition | Investopedia - February 6th, 2018 [February 6th, 2018]
- Self-proclaimed Satoshi Nakamoto sued for swindling $5 ... - March 2nd, 2018 [March 2nd, 2018]
- Bitcoin's Creator Satoshi Nakamoto Is Probably This ... - March 28th, 2018 [March 28th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto - Wikipedia - May 7th, 2018 [May 7th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Known to CIA? FBI? Created by NSA? Search ... - August 21st, 2018 [August 21st, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto, bitcoins enigmatic creator - Brain scan - September 6th, 2018 [September 6th, 2018]
- Bootstrapped Gavin: Satoshi Nakamotos identity revealed ... - September 6th, 2018 [September 6th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto was interested in joining Trons Atlas ... - September 14th, 2018 [September 14th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Revealed Says UK Nonprofit Stylometry ... - October 9th, 2018 [October 9th, 2018]
- 2018 Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? Psychic Insights Michelle ... - October 28th, 2018 [October 28th, 2018]
- How bitcoin has failed to achieve Satoshi Nakamotos ... - November 6th, 2018 [November 6th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Introduced Bitcoin 10 Years Ago ... - November 6th, 2018 [November 6th, 2018]
- Who Is Satoshi Nakamoto? - bitcoinplay.net - December 14th, 2018 [December 14th, 2018]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Finally Revealed! A Back-Of-The-Envelope ... - December 14th, 2018 [December 14th, 2018]
- The Incomplete List of People Speculated to Be Satoshi ... - January 6th, 2019 [January 6th, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto's profile updated 2018! | Crypto Insider - January 6th, 2019 [January 6th, 2019]
- Bitcoin (BTC) Creator Satoshi Nakamoto More Powerful Than ... - January 6th, 2019 [January 6th, 2019]
- Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? - What is Bitcoin? - January 6th, 2019 [January 6th, 2019]
- Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? - Invest in Blockchain - January 6th, 2019 [January 6th, 2019]
- Fake Satoshi Nakamoto Craig Wright Rats Out Ethereum Trying ... - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- Will The Real Satoshi Nakamoto Please Stand Up No, Sit Down ... - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- Who Is Satoshi Nakamoto? The Top 4 Candidates Revealed ... - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Person Of The Year - Business Insider - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- Will The Real Satoshi Nakamoto Please Stand Up - bitcoinist.com - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- From Dorian Nakamoto to Elon Musk: The Incomplete List of ... - February 19th, 2019 [February 19th, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto May Have Considered a Bitcoin Kill Switch ... - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- How Rich is Satoshi Nakamoto Today? - coincentral.com - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? - CCN - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Bitcoin's Creator Satoshi Nakamoto Is Probably This Unknown ... - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto: Who is Bitcoin's Mysterious Creator ... - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto May Have Considered a Bitcoin Kill Switch - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? We Look at The Possible Candidates ... - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- New Information Heightens Satoshi Nakamoto Mystery - Bitcoin News - March 22nd, 2019 [March 22nd, 2019]
- Satoshi Nakamoto Mines Over 40% of Bitcoin Cash, Sparks ... - May 5th, 2019 [May 5th, 2019]
- Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? John McCafee Claims to Know And ... - May 5th, 2019 [May 5th, 2019]
- Back to the Satoshi Nakamoto Bitcoin affair - BBC News - May 5th, 2019 [May 5th, 2019]
- Bitcoin block size limit debate: An overview - Cryptopolitan - September 18th, 2019 [September 18th, 2019]
- Is it Legal to Invest in Bitcoins in India? Here's a Guide to Cryptocurrencies - News18 - September 18th, 2019 [September 18th, 2019]
- Someone just moved $1.4 billion in Bitcoin - ACS - September 18th, 2019 [September 18th, 2019]
- You Can Now Prove a Whole Blockchain With One Math Problem Really - CoinDesk - September 18th, 2019 [September 18th, 2019]
- Bitek CEO talks spreading Bitcoin SV news in Latin America - CoinGeek - September 18th, 2019 [September 18th, 2019]
- Are 18 months enough for SpaceChain's extraterrestrial blockchain network? - Cryptopolitan - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Bitcoin Will Surge to $20,000, States BitMEX Chief Executive After Fed Prints $53 Bln of QE - U.Today - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- The Top 5 Cryptocurrency Exchanges - Asia Crypto Today - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Snowden Triumphs Bitcoin While US Govt Tries Book Earnings Seizure - CCN.com - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- What Is Blockchain Technology? - The Crypto Coin Discovery - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- US Arrests One of the First Ethereum Devs - ihodl.com - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Craig Wright Claims He Almost Settled the Case with the Kleiman's - ihodl.com - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Craig Wright to Negotiate for Settlement Over 1.1 Million Bitcoin Ownership Trial - CryptoNewsZ - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Social media site Tsu set to return - ZDNet - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- OPINION: Institutional Trading Could Kill Crypto Exchanges - Markets Media - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Craig Wrights Hidden Treasures: Court Order to Unlock the Tulip Trust - Cointelegraph - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Five Reasons Satoshi Nakamoto Is Smarter than Mark Zuckerberg - CCN.com - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- And Satoshis True Identity is - CCN.com - September 19th, 2019 [September 19th, 2019]
- Donald Trump or Prince William? New Bitcoin Father Theory - Coin Idol - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- EPFL Researchers Invent Low-Cost Alternative to Bitcoin | Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News - Fintechnews Switzerland - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- How to think about the future of digital currency - The Next Web - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- Regulators Must Have Died and Made Crypto Exchanges King - CCN.com - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- Bitcoin Price to Hit $90,000 After May 2020 Halving, Predicts Germany's Top... - Coinspeaker - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- Block.ones SEC settlement over EOS ICO is shockingly weak say critics - Decrypt - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- Bitcoin has a massive carbon footprint. This clever new cryptocurrency doesnt - Digital Trends - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- John McAfee on Libra, Satoshi Nakamoto, and the Binance Ban [BeInCrypto Interview] - BeInCrypto - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- AI, The Great Depression And Satoshi Nakamoto: Robert Shillers Narrative Economics Is A Cautionary Tale For Our Times - Forbes - October 2nd, 2019 [October 2nd, 2019]
- Analyzing the Bitcoin Phenomenon - ChartAttack - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Latest cryptocurrency news and prices, 09 October 2019 - The South African - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Alipay Claps Back at Binance, Reaffirms Ban on Bitcoin & Other Cryptocurrencies - BlockPublisher - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Bitcoin Association and Cambridge Partner Over Bitcoin SV - Live Bitcoin News - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- How Bitcoin Miners Fueled the Bear Market Trend of 2018 - BTCNN - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Bitfinex and Tether Face Class Action Filed by Lawyers Who Sued Craig Wright - CryptoGlobe - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Cryptocurrency: What to know about digital money - Fox Business - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- Bitcoin History Part 18: The First Bitcoin Wallet - Bitcoin News - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- 2 Bitcoin Developers Explain How The Cryptocurrency Could Still Fail - Forbes - October 12th, 2019 [October 12th, 2019]
- With 18 Million Bitcoins Mined, How Hard Is That 21 Million Limit? - CoinDesk - October 25th, 2019 [October 25th, 2019]
- Wonders Of The Blockchain-Enabled Supply Chain - Coinrevolution.com - October 25th, 2019 [October 25th, 2019]
- Oxford English Dictionary Recognizes Growing Adoption of Crypto by Adding 'Satoshi' - CryptoGlobe - October 25th, 2019 [October 25th, 2019]
- Bitcoin moves towards the foresight of inventor Satoshi Nakamoto - OBN - October 25th, 2019 [October 25th, 2019]
- Jack Dorsey: Bitcoin is becoming the Internets national currency - Decrypt - October 25th, 2019 [October 25th, 2019]
- Exclusive Interview with John McAfee: Epstein Didnt Kill Himself, Bitcoin to Hit $1 million, & Rus - U.Today - November 25th, 2019 [November 25th, 2019]
- More than just crypto: blockchain usage grows amidst greater regulation - Bobsguide - November 25th, 2019 [November 25th, 2019]
- Default Bitcoin Addresses Are Now Longer But Simpler & Cheaper to Use - Cryptonews - November 25th, 2019 [November 25th, 2019]