Satoshi Nakamoto is the name by which the creator or creators of Bitcoin are known. We say creator or creators of Bitcoin because it is not known for sure if Satoshi Nakamoto is the name of a single person, or the creators of Bitcoin have decided to use the name to try to maintain anonymity about their real identities.
The name has become synonymous with Bitcoin and despite the importance of this cryptocurrency on the international scene, Satoshi Nakamoto has not yet been found. That is why it is speculated that it may be a fictitious name of a person or a group of people.
What we do know is that Satoshi Nakamoto is the pseudonym who wrote the original Bitcoin document or “whitepaper” and is the identity to which the invention of Bitcoin is credited. Despite the fact that several people have identified themselves as Satoshi, the truth is that the real identity of Satoshi Nakamoto has not yet been revealed. Taking into account the price of Bitcoin today we would be talking about a billionaire person
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Deciphering the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto
For many, the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto is the most enigmatic in the world of cryptocurrencies and the truth is that he adds an interesting question in this digital world of cryptocurrencies. The only thing we know for sure is that in 2008 the memorandum on Bitcoin signed by Satoshi Nakamoto was published and this was a real revolution in the financial field. The publication fostered the development of cryptocurrencies.
The memorandum is called “Bitcoin: A peer-to-peer electronic cash system” in English: “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” This document describes the use of a P2P network as a solution to the problem of simultaneous spending that can occur in the use of digital currencies. This problem is that a digital currency or a digital token can be duplicated in multiple transactions. This problem does not occur with physical currency, since a banknote or coin, due to its physical nature, can only exist in a specific place at a specific time. However, this does not happen with digital currency since it does not exist in a physical space, when using a digital currency in a transaction we do not necessarily have to take it away from someone in their possession.
The solutions to try to combat this problem of simultaneous spending or “double-spending” in English, have historically been based on involving intermediaries in operations. These are trusted third parties who basically verify that a digital currency has been spent by the person who had it. In many cases, these third parties, such as banks, can handle this type of transaction without increasing the risk.
However, this model based on trust can present a great risk of fraud if that third party that we have to trust is not really trustworthy. These intermediaries can only be eliminated if the transactions are encrypted.
This is where Nakamoto’s figure and his Bitcoin post come into play. What he proposes is a decentralized approach to transactions, this leads to the creation of blockchains. In a blockchain, temporary records for a transaction are added to the end of the previous temporary records, all this is based on the proof-of-work methodology, in this way a historical record is generated that cannot be changed.
As these transaction logs are distributed across different nodes in the system, it is very difficult, if not impossible, for someone maliciously to gain control of the system and rewrite the ledger or ledger to take advantage of it. Records on the blockchain are kept safe because the amount of computational power to decrypt them discourages small-scale attacks.
Satoshi Nakamoto’s Story
Satoshi Nakamoto was involved in the beginnings of Bitcoin working on the first version of the software that was released in 2009. All communications leaving Nakamoto or going to Nakamoto were done electronically. The lack of personal or details about the figure of Satoshi makes it impossible to know what the identity of the real person behind this name is.
However, a curious fact is that all participants of Satoshi with Bitcoin ended in 2010. The latest evidence of communication by Satoshi is a message to another cryptocurrency developer in which he said that he was going to start participating in other things.
All this mystery and the impossibility of putting a face to the name have generated enormous speculation around the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto and his identity. As the popularity of cryptocurrencies grew, the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto also grew in importance and mystery in equal measure.
Although Nakamoto’s identity could not be assigned to anyone, in particular, neither person nor group of people, what is known is that Nakamoto has an important package of Bitcoins under his control that is estimated at approximately 1 million Bitcoins, at today’s price of more than 30,000 million euros.
Taking into account that the maximum possible number of Bitcoins generated is 21 million, it is estimated that Nakamoto controls approximately 5% of the total Bitcoin, undoubtedly a relevant figure with great importance in the market.
Candidates for «Satoshi Nakamoto»
Lacking a recognizable face, and unsurprisingly, candidates for Satoshi Nakamoto have been popping up over the past few years. Despite this, it has never been possible to prove that they are the real Satoshi Nakamoto.
Hal finney
He is a relevant figure in the cypherpunk movement, not to be confused with the “cyberpunk” literary subgenre. Cypherpunks advocate the use of cryptography and technologies that provide user privacy as a tool to promote social and political change. Hal Finney was a very active figure in the Bitcoin community and was there from its birth, in fact, he was the first person to receive a Bitcoin transaction.
Dorian Nakamoto
It is about a California engineer who was identified as Satoshi Nakamoto from a Newsweek article published in 2014 by Leah McGrath Goodman. Despite the investigation carried out by the Newsweek article, the truth is that it is not conclusive whether Dorian is really Satoshi or not. A curious fact is that Hal Finney lived relatively close to Dorian Nakamoto and this only adds more mystery to all this unknown.
Nick szabo
Like Hal Finney, Nick Szabo is a well-known activist in the cypherpunk movement and was friends with many of the people who moved in the circles of the movement during the time of the launch of Bitcoin. In 2005 he published an article in which he theorized about the launch of a digital currency that he called “Bitgold” that would not depend on the validation or trust of intermediaries.
Craig wright
Another candidate for Satoshi Nakamoto is Craig Wright, an Australian academic who is also involved in various businesses. Gizmodo and Wired have published articles suggesting that Craig may be the person behind Bitcoin, but it is also true that there is research that indicates that it may all be part of an elaborate hoax. However, he continues to indicate that he is the person behind the cryptocurrency.
Getting clues thanks to the Bitcoin Blockchain
Analysis of the Bitcoin blockchain has helped to deduce which addresses are Satoshi Nakamoto’s with a high degree of probability. RSK Labs scientist Sergio Demián Lerner has made an analysis of the blockchain thanks to which it can be known that Satoshi has around 1 million Bitcoin. All of these addresses on the blockchain date back to the beginnings of Bitcoin in 2009.
Over the years some of the bitcoins at these early cryptocurrency addresses have been used in transactions. This has generated much speculation as to whether it was Satoshi who carried out such operations. The analysis carried out by this scientist has revealed that these transactions do not have to do with the addresses attributed to Satoshi and that his Bitcoin reserves are still dormant.
On May 21, 2020, a transaction of 40 Bitcoins took place from a Bitcoin wallet that is likely to be from Satoshi Nakamoto, since it had been inactive since 2009, to another unknown wallet. The Bitcoins that were moved in this operation are Bitcoins that were mined in the first month of Bitcoin’s existence.
Although it is not certain whether the Bitcoin belonged to Satoshi Nakamoto or not, the truth is that there was a curious movement in the market as Bitcoin users began to think that perhaps Satoshi was getting rid of his Bitcoins and there was some general commotion.
Conclusions about the figure of Satoshi Nakamoto
The truth is that it is curious and enigmatic in equal parts as the father of Bitcoin, a digital currency and an entire decentralized digital currency exchange system, is a person with so much mystery around his figure. But it is also true that it is precisely under the premise of privacy and encrypted communications under which Bitcoin is founded, and therefore it makes a certain sense that we cannot identify with certainty the father of this currency.
Undoubtedly an interesting mystery that only contributes to the popularity of Bitcoin and its ability to guarantee the privacy of users.
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