A new documentary claims to have solved the greatest mystery in cryptocurrency: the true identity of the inventor of Bitcoin. The question has captivated the internet since the digital currency was launched by an unknown person or persons calling themselves Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009. Now the makers of an HBO film say they finally have the answer: Canadian crypto expert Peter Todd. The only problem with the theory - Mr Todd has dismissed it as "ludicrous."
In Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery, Peter Todd is confronted by film-maker Cullen Hoback. Mr Hoback shows him his evidence and asks him if he was behind the now trillion dollar invention - a suggestion Mr Todd laughs off. "I am not Satoshi Nakamoto", he has since posted on X.
The intrigue around Satoshi is not just due to the mystery of their identity, but because of the enormous wealth they have accumulated. If they still had control of their bitcoin wallet, it would be worth around $69bn today - meaning Satoshi would be around the 20th richest person in the world.
Peter Todd is a prominent Bitcoin developer and has been credited with many innovations in the world's first and largest cryptocurrency. But he has never previously been named as a prime Satoshi candidate in the years that people have spent trying to unmask the Bitcoin inventor.
There is huge interest in this latest attempt to solve that riddle. Ahead of the documentary being released more than $44m was placed in bets on crypto betting website Polymarket on who the programme would name as Satoshi.
According to a report by Olga Kharif for Bloomberg, a new HBO documentary, “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery,” explores the origins of Bitcoin and suggests that Canadian software developer Peter Todd might be the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto. Released on Tuesday, the 100-minute film features interviews with several prominent early Bitcoin figures, including Adam Back, Roger Ver, Samson Mow, and Todd.
The documentary’s creator, Cullen Hoback, relies on circumstantial evidence to propose that Todd could be Nakamoto. This includes posts from early Bitcoin forums where Todd was active. However, Todd dismissed the idea during the film, calling it “ludicrous” and jokingly claiming, “I am Satoshi Nakamoto.”
The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto has been one of the biggest mysteries in the cryptocurrency world since Bitcoin’s inception in 2009. Over the years, various people have been suggested as Nakamoto, including Dorian Nakamoto, who was incorrectly identified by Newsweek in 2014, and Nick Szabo, a computer scientist often linked to Bitcoin’s creation. Craig Wright, an Australian entrepreneur, also claimed to be Nakamoto, but a U.K. judge ruled that Wright is not Bitcoin’s creator.
One of his pieces of evidence that Mr Todd is Satoshi is a forum post he found from Peter Todd that looked to be a continuation of one from Satoshi.
Another is that he once said online that he destroyed a huge number of the digital coins deliberately.
A leading theory is that Satoshi deliberately destroyed access to his massive stash of bitcoins that were the originals created to start bitcoin.
The 1.1m coins are now worth a fortune but have never been spent or transferred.
Satoshi's stash of unmoved coins represent 5% of all bitcoins as the inventor decided that there would only ever be 21 million coins created.
Mr Todd though says his posting history indicates he was not involved - he claims he was "too busy with school and work."
Todd is a Canadian cryptographer and developer who is well-known for his contributions to the Bitcoin ecosystem. As one of the early Bitcoin developers, he has been involved in significant advancements within the community, particularly as a Bitcoin Core developer since 2014. Todd has a deep understanding of blockchain technology and has worked on various projects, including OpenTimestamps, which is designed to provide decentralized timestamping.
Todd’s career includes roles as Chief Scientist for projects such as Mastercoin, a digital currency built on the Bitcoin blockchain, and Dark Wallet, an open-source wallet emphasizing privacy. He has been actively involved in other crypto initiatives, such as participating in the 2016 trusted setup ceremony for Zcash, although he later criticized certain aspects of the process.
Beyond Bitcoin, Todd has been an outspoken voice in the crypto community, often offering critical insights into security and blockchain integrity. His work focuses on making decentralized technologies more robust and trustworthy, and he continues to play a key role in the development and refinement of blockchain solutions.
Do we finally know who created Bitcoin?
For years, the world has known the name Satoshi Nakamoto – a pseudonym for the person or persons – who created Bitcoin in 2009.
But now a new HBO documentary is pointing the finger at another name in the world of Bitcoin.
The documentary Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery by filmmaker Cullen Hoback claims that Bitcoin researcher Peter Todd is in fact Satoshi.
Hoback previously directed the HBO series Q: Into The Storm where he potentially unmasked the identity of the shadowy figure Q as Ron Watkins.
But who is Todd? What do we know about him?
Let’s take a closer look:
Todd is a 39-year-old Canadian software developer.
His profile on X describes him as a “cryptochronomancer.”
Todd was deeply involved in the earliest years of Bitcoin, as per StartUpNews.fyi.
He claims to have taken an interest in it at age 15.
Todd said he began interacting with early Bitcoin contributor Hal Finney and Hashcash inventor Adam Back as a teenager.
Todd graduated from the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto, as per Politico.
As per UK Finance, he claims to have bought his first Bitcoin when the price was 20 cents.
The current price of Bitcoin is $63,126.50.
He is among the few persons publicly documented to have communicated with Nakamoto before he disappeared in 2011.
As per New York Magazine, Todd on December 10, 2010, on a Bitcoin blog responded to a post by Satoshi on Bitcoin transaction fees.
Todd in 2001 briefly worked as a Linux system support and service Starnix developer.
Todd’s career began in 2008 when he worked as an Electronics Designer at Gedex Inc.
Since July 2014, Todd has been a Bitcoin Core Developer at Coinkite.
He has also served as a board adviser to digital collectible platform Verisart since 2015.
Todd is currently the chief scientist at open-source Bitcoin wallet Dark Wallet and digital currency and communications protocol Mastercoin.
He founded OpenTimestamps – a project which aims to give blockchain timestamping a standard format.
‘Very convinced’
Hoback remains convinced Todd is Satoshi.
“I obviously made the film. And, I mean, I’m very convinced,” Hoback told New York Magazine. “My supposition for some years now is that, given that nobody found anything electronic, that we’re probably never going to know, and so what’s left is more circumstantial.”
“He clearly put planning and effort to stay anonymous, and based on the fact that nobody found anything for the last 15 years, it looks like he was completely successful and didn’t make any mistakes. So it doesn’t seem likely to me that he would get identified after that if he was intending to not be.”
But Todd has denied being Satoshi.
“I’m not Satoshi,” Todd wrote on X.
“For the record, I’m not Satoshi,” he told New York Magazine.
Finney and Back are among a number of high-profile persons in the crypto world suspected to be Satoshi.
Australian entrepreneur Craig Wright had claimed he was Satoshi but was unable to provide proof.
Others investors simply don’t want to know.
Crypto investor Nic Carter told Politico, “There’s no bigger mystery in history.”
“The fact that Satoshi successfully pulled this off — it really is magical. I personally hope we never find out who Satoshi is.”
Satoshi Nakamoto remains important because the Bitcoin wallets associated with Nakamoto hold approximately 1 million Bitcoin worth over $62 billion. Any movement of these assets could drastically affect Bitcoin’s value. Furthermore, identifying Nakamoto could influence how governments and corporations approach Bitcoin’s adoption, given the creator’s significance in the cryptocurrency’s development. While Nakamoto has not been heard from since 2011, their legacy and potential influence continue to loom large over the Bitcoin community.
Featured Image via YouTube
The views and opinions expressed by the author, or any people mentioned in this article, are for informational purposes only, and they do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice. Investing in or trading cryptoassets comes with a risk of financial loss.
