Social media is abuzz with speculation after a newly-released HBO documentary claimed to unmask the true identity of the creator of Bitcoin, known only as Satoshi Nakamoto.
"Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery" claims to have solved the biggest mystery of the cryptocurrency world.
Since it was launched in 2009, the real identity of Nakamoto has captivated the online world. Now the new documentary has claimed that Canadian crypto expert Peter Todd is behind the trillion-dollar invention.
In the HBO film, director Cullen Hoback approached Todd with his findings, including a post that appears to be a continuation of one made by Satoshi.
'I am not Satoshi'
He claims that Todd had once said that he deliberately destroyed a large number of bitcoins which plays into a long-held Bitcoin theory that its creator Satoshi had destroyed access to his stash of 1.1 million bitcoins, which would now be worth around $69 billion.
If this claim is true, the wealth from the Bitcoin would make Satoshi one of the 20 richest people in the world.
{{/usCountry}}If this claim is true, the wealth from the Bitcoin would make Satoshi one of the 20 richest people in the world.
{{/usCountry}}However, this claim was short-lived as Todd quickly rubbished the claim as “ludicrous". "I'm not Satoshi," he wrote in a reply on X. (Also read: HBO documentary to unmask Satoshi Nakamoto: Release date and how to watch)
Todd, who has over the years made significant contributions to Bitcoin’s development, said that his involvement with Bitcoin was minimal, claiming to be too busy with school and work to create the cryptocurrency. "I was working full time at a startup, while also finishing an arts degree, and then after that, starting a physics degree. I've talked about this publicly many times," he said on X.
"The truth is pretty simple: there's hundreds, even thousands of people who could have created Bitcoin. We're not going to find Satoshi," he said.
Who could be Satoshi?
Since its creation, a number of people from the computing world have been speculated to be the man behind Bitcoin.
In 2014, Dorian Nakamoto, a Japanese-American man living in California, was theorised to be Satoshi and in 2015, an investigation pointed to Australian computer scientist Craig Wright.
Although, Wright declared in interviews that he was indeed Satoshi, his claims were disregarded by the community.
Even a UK High Court judge ruled that there was "overwhelming" evidence that he is not Satoshi.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk was also thought to be the Bitcoin creator after a former employee at SpaceX suggested it.
Crypto enthusiasts have refused to accept the documentary's claims and the search for the true Satoshi Nakamoto continues. (Also read: Who ‘invented’ Bitcoin? UK court to decide: 10 things to know about the trial)