Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, may now be wealthier than Bill Gates, based on the rising valuation of Nakamoto’s Bitcoin holdings, according to new onchain research.
Nakamoto’s holdings may exceed 1.096 million Bitcoin (BTC), worth over $108 billion, according to Conor Grogan, director at Coinbase.
New research from Akrham Intelligence identified additional addresses potentially belonging to Nakamoto, Grogan said in a Feb. 5 X post:
“In total, this research points to Satoshi owning 1.096M BTC, $108B worth, making them wealthier on paper than Bill Gates,” Grogan said.
Satoshi’s new addresses. Source: Conor Grogan
At the time of writing, former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates had a net worth of about $106 billion, making him the world’s 16th richest person, according to Forbes rankings.
Provided that the transaction patterns are accurate, this would make Nakamoto the world’s 16th richest person, overtaking Gates.
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Can Kraken uncover Satoshi’s true identity?
Centralized exchange (CEX) Kraken may possess data related to Nakamoto’s identity, as Nakamoto’s last known transactions with a CEX occurred through Cavirtex, a Canada-based exchange acquired by Kraken in 2016, Grogan noted:
“CaVirtEx was purchased by Kraken in 2016. As such. there is a chance that @jespow has information on the true identity behind Satoshi if they maintained any KYC information on this wallet.”
“My advice to him would be to delete the data,” Grogan added.
Nakamoto potential CEX transactions. Source: Conor Grogan
Nakamoto’s last documented onchain transactions with a CEX reportedly occurred in 2014, according to Grogan’s findings.
Satoshi Nakamoto statue in Lugano, Switzerland. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: Bitcoin risks correction below $90K on US-China trade war concerns
Cavirtex may have lacked KYC verification
However, at the time, Know Your Customer (KYC) verification was not widely enforced in the cryptocurrency industry.
Kraken was among the first documented exchanges to implement KYC verification as early as 2014, but requirements for all users were only implemented in 2017 and 2018.
Kraken acquired Cavirtex in January 2016, but there are no documents suggesting that the exchange had KYC requirements for users.
Cointelegraph has approached Kraken for details about the Nakamoto-linked wallet’s potential identity.
Cointelegraph also reached out to Arkham for more details surrounding the “Patoshi pattern” and Nakamoto’s holdings.
The Truth About Satoshi Nakamoto: Adam Back Explains. Source: YouTube
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