The new HBO documentary “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery” suggested that Peter Todd, an early Bitcoin developer, is the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of Bitcoin.
The nearly two-hour film, directed by Cullen Hoback, is described as a globe-trotting investigation aimed at solving one of the internet’s greatest mysteries.
Todd quickly denied the claim on X (formerly Twitter), dismissing the notion that he is Nakamoto. The documentary features exchanges between Todd and Hoback in which Todd seems to toy with the idea, at one point claiming to be Nakamoto, only to undermine that statement in later comments.
I’m not Satoshi.
— Peter Todd (@peterktodd) October 8, 2024
The release of the documentary has led to a surge of online criticism, with many in the crypto community questioning the film’s conclusions. Some argued that the evidence presented in the documentary is not strong enough to definitively link Todd to Nakamoto.
“Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery” premiered on HBO on Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET. Hoback, known for his previous work on the docu-series “Q: Into the Storm,” which investigated the QAnon conspiracy theory, directed the film.
Satoshi Nakamoto’s identity has been a topic of intense debate since the creator of Bitcoin disappeared in December 2010. Some estimates suggest that Nakamoto, if still alive, could control up to 1.1 million Bitcoin, valued at around $68 billion. Despite more than a decade of speculation, Nakamoto has remained anonymous, with theories ranging from an individual to a group of people behind the pseudonym.
Before the documentary aired, the decentralized prediction market Polymarket generated over $20 million in betting volume, with users speculating on who the film would name as Nakamoto. The top contenders included Len Sassaman, Nick Szabo, Adam Back, and David Kleiman, but Todd was not even considered a frontrunner.
This buzz also led to a surge in the creation of memecoins themed around Len Sassaman, who many believe could be Nakamoto, and even his beloved cats, Sasha and ODIN.
Director Cullen Hoback acknowledged that the documentary’s conclusions would likely generate controversy, stating that “people are going to debate it regardless of how strong of a case we made, and that’s fine. That’s the nature of this space.”
The debate over Nakamoto’s true identity continues, with Botanix Labs CEO Willem Schroé commenting on the mystery. Schroé noted that despite the global effort to uncover Nakamoto’s identity, the fact that they have remained anonymous for over 15 years suggests that Nakamoto was most likely a single individual.
