Who created Bitcoin? The Satoshi Nakamoto story
The pseudonymous inventor, the timeline of Bitcoin's first years, and the mystery that's never been solved.
Bitcoin was created by Satoshi Nakamoto, a pseudonym for a person or group whose real identity is unknown. Satoshi published the Bitcoin white paper on October 31, 2008, launched the network on January 3, 2009, posted publicly for the last time in December 2010, and sent the last known private emails in 2011.
Timeline
| August 2008 | The domain bitcoin.org is registered. |
| October 31, 2008 | Satoshi publishes "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System" to a cryptography mailing list. |
| January 3, 2009 | The first block (the "genesis block") is mined. It contains a newspaper headline: "The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks." |
| January 12, 2009 | The first bitcoin transaction: Satoshi sends 10 BTC to programmer Hal Finney. |
| May 22, 2010 | Two pizzas are bought for 10,000 BTC, the first well-known purchase. See Bitcoin Pizza Day. |
| 2010–2011 | Satoshi hands over the project to other developers and stops posting publicly. |
Who could Satoshi be?
Nobody knows. Satoshi wrote fluent English with some British spellings, never revealed personal details, and used careful privacy practices. Several people have been named by journalists or claimed the title; none has proved it, which would be simple to do by moving one of Satoshi's early coins or signing a message with Satoshi's keys.
- Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist, claimed for years to be Satoshi. In March 2024 the UK High Court ruled that he is not Satoshi and did not write the white paper.
- Hal Finney, Nick Szabo and Dorian Nakamoto have all been suggested by others; each has denied it (Finney died in 2014).
- A 2024 HBO documentary pointed to developer Peter Todd, who denied it.
Satoshi's coins
Researchers estimate that Satoshi mined roughly 1 million bitcoins in 2009 and the first half of 2010. Those coins have never moved, which is one reason the mystery fascinates people: if they ever did, it would be major news.
Frequently asked questions
When did Bitcoin start?
The white paper was published on October 31, 2008, and the network launched on January 3, 2009.
Is Satoshi Nakamoto a real name?
It's almost certainly a pseudonym. Whether it was one person or a group is unknown.
How much bitcoin does Satoshi own?
An estimated roughly 1 million BTC, mined in 2009 and 2010 and never moved. The exact figure is an estimate based on patterns in early blocks.
Where to next
Sources
Written for beginners and checked against the sources listed. Last reviewed October 26, 2026. This page is educational and is not financial, tax or legal advice. How we write and check pages.