British Computer Scientist Adam Back Denies He Is Bitcoin Developer Satoshi Nakamoto
A British computer scientist has firmly insisted he is not the elusive developer of bitcoin, following a report that claimed to unmask him as its creator. The story, published in the New York Times, details a years-long investigation to identify Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious author of the bitcoin white paper that laid the theoretical foundations for modern digital currencies.
New York Times Report Points to Adam Back
The report names Adam Back, a London-born computer scientist and entrepreneur, as the potential creator. In a thread on X, Back promptly denied being the mysterious—and presumably ultra-wealthy—technologist. He wrote, "I also don’t know who satoshi is, and i think it is good for bitcoin that this is the case, as it helps bitcoin be viewed [as] a new asset class, the mathematically scarce digital commodity."
Nakamoto's true identity has been the subject of intense speculation for years. Previous attempts to unmask him have pointed to figures such as Nick Szabo, a reclusive Hungarian-American computer scientist; Hal Finney, a software developer; and an unknown Australian genius who was later exposed as a fraud.
Investigation Uncovers Similarities
This time, the trail led journalist John Carreyrou to Back, who was a member of an online anarchist cryptography community called the cypherpunks in the early 1990s. Carreyrou unearthed similarities between Back and Nakamoto by combing through decades of old internet postings and analyzing commonalities in their public writings. These included offhand comments like "I’m better with code than I am with words" and shared niche interests.
He compared timelines, noting that Back suddenly went dormant for some years on cryptography-related forums around the time Satoshi emerged as a presence. Carreyrou also used artificial intelligence to compare Back and Satoshi's use of language. At a bitcoin conference in El Salvador, he confronted Back with the evidence, describing Back as reddening and shifting uncomfortably, and making a conversational slip that appeared to speak as if he was Satoshi himself. Carreyrou wrote, "He’d removed any lingering doubt in my mind that I had the right man."
Back's Response and Expert Opinions
Back dismissed the claims, stating that the artefacts leading to Carreyrou's conclusion were "a combination of coincidence and similar phrases from people with similar experience and interests." However, not everyone was convinced. Domer, a well-known Polymarket gambler, replied to Back's post, saying, "After reading that article, I’m going with a 99% chance that you’re Satoshi. Such obvious tells (the disappearing act is a classic mafia/werewolf rookie error)."
Others expressed more skepticism. Stephen Murdoch, a professor of computer science at University College London, commented, "There’s some indication that it’s him, but there’s no smoking gun." He added, "It’s not implausible but my bet would still be Hal Finney," especially because Finney received the first bitcoin transaction from Satoshi, a common practice for testing systems.
Dr. Jacky Mallett, an assistant professor of computer science at Reykjavík University, suggested Satoshi was "almost certainly more than one person," noting updates to the bitcoin code that indicate multiple contributors. She said, "I think there was a small group of people behind this, and that they understood financial structures more than they are credited for."
Implications for Bitcoin and Financial Markets
Back is the owner of a bitcoin treasury firm that is merging with a publicly traded company created by Cantor Fitzgerald, formerly led by US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick. If Back were Nakamoto—and the owner of 1.1 million coins worth tens of billions of pounds—he would be required to disclose that to the Securities and Exchange Commission, as such a fortune could materially affect the bitcoin market.
In a final note, Back wrote on X, "We are all Satoshi," echoing a sentiment often shared in the cryptocurrency community. The debate over bitcoin's origins continues, with this latest report adding fuel to the ongoing mystery.
