The Bold and Mysterious Start of Crypto

Thirteen years ago cryptocurrencies were set into motion by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, a pseudonym. The identity of Bitcoin’s creator remains one of the greatest mysteries of modern times.

“Throughout the history of Bitcoin, efforts to unveil Nakamoto have continued unabated. Gossips in cryptocurrency forums have engaged in wild speculation: Nakamoto is a member of the Yakuza, part of a cabal of developers, a money-launderer or maybe even a woman,” according to Robb Report.

For anyone to create an open source cryptocurrency and then disappear into the ether only a few years later prompts intrigue. The riddle keeps people awake at night, poring through forums, researching developers. Who would have the skills and the gumption to do this?

Sleuths and journalists have been digging, and without success.

The financial world long needed a hero.

Satoshi Nakamoto stepped up for the common man, with the goal of stripping the control of currency from financial elites. The concept of peer-to-peer transactions without being muddied by a middleman has real potential to shift things. Proponents began gathering around him, around the concept and what it could mean. Programmers and developers met in forums to write code – and the collaborative, transparent nature of cryptocurrency was established.

Did the people contributing early code to Bitcoin have a full grasp of its potential? Do we even fully grasp it now?

To say that cryptocurrencies are disruptive is an understatement and there is an ever-growing list of big name investors that are adding legitimacy. JPMorgan, BlackRock and BNY Mellon are now offering cryptocurrencies to customers.

Transparency reigns in the kingdom of crypto thanks to the blockchain, a financial ledger distributed to all in the network, visible and secure.

Decentralized and accessible to all, cryptocurrencies have the potential to bring people out of poverty in a way that has not previously been seen. Satoshi Nakamoto has earned the distinction of being the philosophical figurehead, the father of cryptocurrency. He provided early guidance and then stepped back to watch his brain child grow into a powerful force. We are witnessing history in the making – and we are able to fully participate in it.

His reasons for disappearing and remaining anonymous are merited – the incentives for him (or them, as some believe “he” is a group of developers) are powerful.

As Rebecca Baldridge noted in the Robb Report, Satoshi Nakamoto gets to remain an anonymous, “mythical creature with a Bitcoin stash of epic proportions.”  

“Owning a $60 billion fortune makes personal security a compelling concern. Given Bitcoin’s potential to challenge sovereign fiat currencies, Nakamoto could fear potential legal actions by governments—if not other forms of government sanction,” she wrote.

The mystery may never be solved, or perhaps it will be in years to come. Regardless, Nakamoto quietly set into motion a force for change that bucks antiquated, traditional currencies that often remain dependent on the stability of governments and institutions. He created the opportunity for wealth development for people in every corner of the world.

For now, Nakamoto surfaces in forums on occasion to let journalists know when they have mistaken his identity. The stories will keep coming, the mystery will keep expanding, forums will continue the lofty discussion of who exactly changed the world and then disappeared.