Who is Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin? It's not Craig Wright according to a UK judge

SoftwareWho is Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin? It’s not Craig Wright according to a UK judgeWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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Bitcoin

The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator ofBitcoin, is the biggest mystery in the crypto world. There’s been a lot of speculation as to who the person or persons behind the first and most valuable crypto really are—and there are a few claimants too. The most publicized of whom is Australian academic Dr Craig Wright. However, after years of litigation, a UK high court judge has ruled that Wright is not Satoshi Nakamoto.

The group argued Wright’s supporting evidence included provably forged documents, backdated edits and even traces of ChatGPT usage, even though ChatGPT was not released until years later.

The judge overwhelmingly agreed, unusually issuing a verdict immediately after the conclusion of the case. According to court reports, Justice Mellor said “I’m prepared to say this: Dr Wright is not the inventor of bitcoin" and “Dr Wright is not the author of the bitcoin white paper and he is not the person who adopted the name Satoshi Nakamoto.”

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Well over a decade has passed since Satoshi Nakamoto’s last publicly known message was posted to theBitcointalk forums. The message gave no hint that he would be going anywhere. Did he die? Did he wish to step away in order to promote decentralization? Or was “Satoshi Nakamoto” a group that subsequently disbanded?

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Satoshi Nakamoto leaves behind dormant wallets estimated to contain as many as 1.1 million Bitcoins. That amounts to some $75 billion at Bitcoin’s current price. If Wright was Satoshi Nakamoto, accessing those early coins would have strengthened his case immensely. He never did.

We may never know who the real person or persons behind Bitcoin are, but if Justice Mellor’s judgment is the final word, the saga of “Faketoshi” is done and dusted.

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