Did Peter Todd Create Bitcoin?
By michael vivar
Before delving into the relationship between Peter Todd and Bitcoin, here’s a brief primer on cryptocurrency (crypto) and blockchain.
Crypto is a form of digital currency kept on digital networks without oversight from legitimate banking and governmental regulators.
Though it’s not recognized as such yet, crypto is growing into a new asset class separate from equities such as stocks or commodities like oil and gold.
Blockchain is a distributed digital ledger that records transactions including those conducted with crypto.
Every time a transaction occurs, a new block is added to the chain. Hardened cryptography prevents previous blocks from being modified, creating secure records.
The combination of anonymity and security appeals to different sectors. Parties who legitimately want to be free from traditional banking and those engaged in illicit trafficking find themselves strange bedfellows.
The first, and still most successful, cryptocurrency is Bitcoin, which emerged in 2008. Lore among enthusiasts indicates the inventor was Satoshi Nakamoto.
Nakamoto’s true identity remains ostensibly unknown, but the provenance for his originating Bitcoin comes from a whitepaper published almost concurrently with Bitcoin’s release.
Speculation on who Nakamoto really is has run rampant over the years. A new HBO documentary, Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery, posits that the man behind the mask is Peter Todd.
Todd is known to definitely be an early Bitcoin developer. Director Cullen Hoback strings together interviews with collaborators and unsubtle clues to bolster the theory regarding Todd.
Todd is interviewed in the film and directly addresses the inquiry by saying, “Well yeah, I’m Satoshi Nakamoto.” It’s unclear whether he was being sarcastic, as he’s since vehemently denied the claim.
Whoever developed Bitcoin, its current market cap is $1.21 trillion with the total crypto market cap at $2.24 trillion. The currency will hold a not-so-insignificant sway on the global economy.
