Software developer Peter Todd is Bitcoin creator Satashi Nakamoto: HBO
A new HBO documentary, "Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery," has once again sparked the debate over the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of Bitcoin. The film proposes that Nakamoto could be Peter Todd, a Canadian software developer. The theory is based on circumstantial evidence from early Bitcoin forum posts and interviews with people closely associated with the cryptocurrency's inception.
Todd dismisses claims of being Nakamoto
When faced with the documentary's claim, Todd dismissed it as "ludicrous." In a seemingly humorous moment during the film, he said, "I am Satoshi Nakamoto," before laughing off the idea. This response adds another layer of intrigue to the ongoing speculation about Nakamoto's true identity since Bitcoin was launched in January 2009.
Previous speculations about Nakamoto's identity
The mystery of Nakamoto's identity has given rise to several theories over the years. In 2014, Newsweek claimed that physicist Dorian Nakamoto was the creator of Bitcoin, a claim he denied. The next year, The New York Times named computer scientist Nick Szabo as a potential candidate. Australian Craig Wright also claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto until a UK court ruled otherwise.
Todd's professional background and involvement with Bitcoin
Todd, an applied cryptography consultant on GitHub, is based in Toronto. His LinkedIn profile describes him as the "Chief Naysayer" at Bitcoin security provider Coinkite, chief scientist at Dark Wallet (an anonymizing wallet service), and chief scientist at project Mastercoin. He has been a part of the Bitcoin community for years, adding more fuel to speculations about him being Nakamoto.
Nakamoto's wallets hold around 1 million Bitcoin
Despite Nakamoto's disappearance since 2011, his significance remains due to the huge amount of Bitcoin held in his wallets. As of now, these wallets hold nearly one million Bitcoin, worth around $62.4 billion. The creator's actions could have a major impact on the cryptocurrency market. Not to mention, revealing Nakamoto's identity could affect government and corporate decisions on adopting this leading cryptocurrency.
