- Author, Joe Tidy
- Role, Cyber correspondent
Bitcoin dey as foundation for di two trillion-dollar cryptocurrency industry. Big investment companies for di world don start to trade am, and one kontri don even make am official currency.
But despite im ogbonge rise, one deep mystery remain for im heart: wetin be di true identity of im founder, Satoshi Nakamoto?
Many don try to answer dat question, but so far all don fail.
So, sake of dat, ears dey prick across our newsroom – and di crypto world at large – wen on Thursday one call bin go out say di mysterious creator of Bitcoin go finally reveal imsef for press conference.
For October, one high-profile HBO documentary bin suggest say na one Canadian bitcoin expert wey dem dey Peter Todd be Nakamoto. Di only problem be say: e tok say no be am, and di crypto world largely shrug am off.
Oga Todd na just di latest for one long line of potential Satoshis – and on Thursday di line bin get longer.
Deep interest dey for who Satoshi Nakamoto be, partly becos dem consider am as revolutionary programmer wey help create di crypto industry.
Im voice, opinions and world view go dey really extremely influential for any industry wit dat kain devoted and zealous fanbase.
But di fascination also be from di fact say, as di holder of more dan 1m bitcoins, Satoshi go be one multi billionaire, dis na sake of say di price of di coins currently dey close to di highest wey eva reach.
Sake of di great wealth, e bin dey one kain unusual make di organiser of Thursday press conference ask me to pay for my seat for im grand unveiling.
One front row seat go be £100. Na anoda £50 if I want unlimited questions. Organiser Charles Anderson bin even encourage me to spend £500 to exchange for di privilege to interview “Satoshi” on stage.
Oga Anderson bin tok say I fit come along anyway but caution say seat fit no dey for me, dat na di kain evel of anticipation.
As e bin happun, seat no be problem.
Only around one dozen reporters bin turn up to di prestigious Front Line Club – wey bin interrupt proceedings for one point to stress say e only provide one room, and no be any official endorsement.
Very soon e come clear say all attendees dey extremely doubt.
After some digging e binshow say both di organiser and di purported Satoshi dey currently involve for one complex legal fight over fraud allegations – wey link to claims to be Satoshi.
Na one unpromising start, and tins bin only get worse from there.
Oga Anderson bin invite “Satoshi” to come on stage.
One man wey dem call Stephen Mollah, wey bin siddon silently for di side di whole time bin waka up and purposely declare: “I dey here to make one statement say yes: I be Satoshi Nakamoto and I create di Bitcoin on Blockchain technology.”
Over di following hour, reporters bin go from amused to irritated as e bin fail to provide any of di evidence wey dem promise for im claims.
Oga Mollah bin promise say e go make di hail-mary move to unlock and interact wit di first ever Bitcoins wey dem create – sometin wey only Satoshi fit do.
I bin comot, along wit oda confused reporters, take wit us any doubts wey dey linger say dis go prove to be yet anoda dead-end for quest to unmask Satoshi.
No be anoda one
Di list of those wey identify – unsuccessfully – as Satoshi Nakamoto dey long.
For 2014, one high-profile article for Newsweek bin tok say na Dorian Nakamoto, one Japanese-American man wey dey live for California.
But e bin deny am and dem don largely debunk di claim.
One year later, Australian computer scientist Craig Wright bin dey outed as Satoshi by reporters.
E bin deny am, bifor e tok say na true – but den fail over many years to produce any evidence.
For di summer di High Court for London bin rule say im tori na fake.
Wia dis foto come from, Reuters
Tech billionaire and crypto enthusiast Elon Musk bin also deny say e dey behind di cryptocurrency afta one former employee for one of im firms, SpaceX, bin suggest am.
Wey bring us to di question: e really matter?
Di crypto market current valuation mean say e worth more dan Google. And e be like say e dey beyond believe say di tech giant go play dat kind big role for our lives and pipo no go sabi di pesin wey found am, and own sizeable chunk of di firm.
Perhaps e get good reason for di real Satoshi to keep schtum though. Say bitcoin stash go make dem worth one estimated $69bn and dia life and character no go doubt or dey heavily scrutinised if dem find dem.
Peter Todd don recently tok say di unwelcome attention wey e don receive don make am dey fear for im safety.
Many for di crypto world dey enjoy di fact say di mystery remain unsolved.
“No one know who Satoshi be and dat na good tin,” Adam Back, one of im core developers (and anoda potential Satoshi candidate) bin post on X recently.
Natalie Brunel, one Bitcoin podcaster tink say Satoshi anonymity no only dey deliberate but essential.
“By Hiding im true identity, Satoshi make sure say Bitcoin no go get one leader or central figure, wey im personal agenda fit influence di protocol,” she bin tell me.
“Dis allow pipo to trust Bitcoin as one system, rather dan place dia trust for one individual or company.”
Carol Alexander, professor of finance for Sussex University – wey dey lecture on di history of Bitcoin – dey less sure.
For her view, di circus around who Satoshi Nakamoto be dey distract from pipo to dey look into – and get to grips wit – di more serious question of how cryptocurrencies fit upend di way di economy dey work.
As I comot di Front Line Club e dey hard to compute di strange press event, beyond one obvious fact.
For now – and perhaps forever – di search for Satoshi kontinu.