Satoshi Nakamoto Breaks 5-Year Hiatus, But Is It Really Him?

• Twitter account “Satoshi Nakamoto” tweets for the first time since October 2018.
• The post teases the reveal of “different aspects” of Bitcoin in the coming months.
• Persist doubts exist about the authenticity of the Twitter account.

The identity of Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto has long confounded cryptocurrency enthusiasts and observers. For over a decade, the search for clues has led to several likely candidates, including programmers Hal Finney and Nick Szabo, with leftfield choices including Elon Musk and Steve Jobs. The most vocal claimant has been computer scientist Craig Wright, who has repeatedly asserted that he is Satoshi. 

Despite Wright’s claims, conclusive proof of Satoshi’s true identity remains elusive. However, excitement and speculation have been sparked by a recent tweet from a Twitter account purportedly belonging to Satoshi, which has laid dormant for the last five years. The cryptic tweet hinted at exploring facets of Bitcoin not found in its original whitepaper, but skepticism persists around the account’s authenticity.

“Satoshi” Breaks Silence

Twitter took the unusual step of appending a note to the tweet stating that the account does not actually belong to Satoshi Nakamoto. The note cautions that the account is controlled by Wright, who “has been proven to be a fraud,” and its content “should not be trusted.”

Former nChain CEO Christen Ager-Hanssen, who recently resigned from his position at nChain amid allegations of shareholder fraud at the company and evidence of Wright falsifying documents, waded in by identifying the account holder as Andy Rowe, a “tinkerer, barman” and self-confessed Wright believer.

The tweet from “Satoshi Nakamoto” hinted coyly at unveiling additional technical aspects of Bitcoin “not explicitly contained within the white paper“. However, the tweet remains as cryptic as Satoshi himself, providing no concrete details on what will be posted in the coming months.

Support for Bitcoin originates from its libertarian ideals that promote decentralization and peer-to-peer pseudonymous transactions outside of government control. However, some have speculated this anti-establishment origin story could itself be misdirection from intelligence agencies who secretly orchestrated Bitcoin as a trojan horse psyop.

Bitcoin Psyop?

Community speculation that Bitcoin is a US government psyop can be traced as far back as 2013 when a Reddit post broached the matter on the basis of Satoshi Nakamoto being a fantasy figure to snare those dissatisfied with the state of the monetary system. 

Further fueling this theory, technically-minded individuals have drawn attention to the SHA-256 cryptographic hash algorithm used by Bitcoin, which was created and patented by the National Security Agency (NSA) in March 2001. Moreover, others have pointed out similarities between the Bitcoin whitepaper and a 1996 NSA paper that explored electronic cash. 

On the Flipside

• Satoshi’s wallets are estimated to hold 1.1 million Bitcoin collectively, making him the biggest BTC holder.
• The only clues about Satoshi’s identity come from his forum posts and emails, which have failed to provide any conclusive evidence.
• Craig Wright told a Norwegian court he cannot cryptographically prove he is Satoshi because he “stomped on” a hard drive containing access to Satoshi’s Bitcoin wallets.

Why This Matters

Based on his writings and subsequent disappearance, Satoshi did not seem to want publicity, recognition, or even monetary gain. This makes him an extreme outlier among the global population, further deepening the mystery surrounding his identity.

Learn more about optimistic market sentiment for Q4 here:
Bitcoin Rally Obliterates Over $40 Million Short Positions

Find out more on allegations leveled against Craig Wright by the former nChain CEO here:
nChain CEO Departs Amid “Conspiracy” and “Faketoshi” Controversy