The mysterious creator celebrates their 50th birthday in 2025: Everything about the father of Bitcoin

The Mystery of a Symbolic Date

On May 4, 2025, according to some online archives, the mysterious pioneer of digital currency, Сатоши Накамото, will celebrate his 50th birthday. However, most industry insiders believe that this special date itself carries deeper meaning — it is not his actual birth date, but a carefully chosen symbol.

This date points to April 5, 1933, the day President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 6102, which prohibited American citizens from holding gold. The year 1975 marks the exact year this ban was lifted, and the public regained ownership of gold. This seemingly “coincidental” timing actually reflects Накамото’s libertarian ideals — Bitcoin as the digital age’s “gold,” transcending government control.

However, based on Накамото’s writing habits and programming style, many researchers infer that his actual age at that time might be older. The use of Hungarian notation (popular in the late 1980s), CamelCase in C language filename conventions (standard practice in the mid-1990s), and references to the 1980s silver market manipulation events in forums, all suggest that Накамото could be around 60 years old.

From Obscurity to Changing the World

On October 31, 2008, a person named Сатоши Накамото first appeared on a cryptography mailing list. He published a 9-page white paper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” proposing a radical idea — creating a digital currency that does not rely on central authorities and can prevent double spending.

Although records show that the creator was a 37-year-old Japanese male, the use of British spellings like “colour” and “optimise,” along with his posting times mostly between 5 and 11 a.m. GMT, strongly suggest he was likely from Europe or North America.

Накамото remained highly active during the early stages of Bitcoin, gradually fading out after December 2010. During this period, he posted over 500 forum messages and wrote thousands of lines of code. His last confirmed communication was in April 2011, after informing early developers of the impending transfer of project control, after which he disappeared from the public eye.

Revolutionary Technical Breakthrough

Накамото’s core contribution was not just proposing a concept but providing a complete technical solution. On January 3, 2009, he mined the genesis block of Bitcoin. Interestingly, this block contained a headline from The Times: “The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks” — serving as both a timestamp and an explanation of his motivation: building an alternative to the traditional banking system amid the global financial crisis.

Накамото successfully solved the long-standing “double-spending problem” — ensuring that the same digital unit cannot be spent twice. Through proof-of-work and a decentralized network of validators, Bitcoin achieved digital scarcity for the first time. This breakthrough laid the foundation for the entire crypto asset space.

An Ever-Undisturbed Fortune

Blockchain analysis indicates that Накамото mined between 750,000 and 1.1 million bitcoins in the first year of Bitcoin’s existence. Valued at approximately $85,000 per bitcoin in April 2025, this wealth amounts to between $6.4 billion and $9.35 billion, enough to rank among the world’s wealthiest individuals.

Remarkably, these bitcoins have never been moved since they were mined. Researcher Sergio Lerner identified a “Patoshi pattern” that helped experts recognize the blocks potentially mined by Накамото, suggesting that the creator intentionally reduced his mining activity over time, leaving room for others.

This prolonged silence has fueled various speculations: Накамото may have passed away, lost access to his private keys, or made a philosophical decision to leave his wealth as a gift to the Bitcoin ecosystem. Some also argue that moving these funds could expose his identity through exchange KYC procedures or on-chain analysis.

The Identity Mystery and Multiple Suspects

Over the years, journalists, researchers, and cryptography enthusiasts have proposed a series of candidate identities:

Hal Finney (1956–2014) was an early cypherpunk who received the first Bitcoin transaction from Накамото. His cryptographic background and geographic connection to a person with the same name in California have fueled speculation, though he denied this identity until his death from ALS in 2014.

Nick Szabo proposed the “Bit Gold” concept, considered a precursor to Bitcoin. Linguistic analysis shows his writing style closely resembles Накамото’s, and his expertise in monetary theory and cryptography aligns perfectly.

Adam Back developed Hashcash, a proof-of-work system cited in the Bitcoin white paper. He had contact with Накамото during Bitcoin’s early development.

Craig Wright has repeatedly claimed to be Накамото and even attempted to claim copyright over the white paper. However, in March 2024, UK High Court judge James Mellor issued a clear ruling that Wright is not the author of the white paper.

Peter Todd is a former Bitcoin developer who was listed as a suspect in the 2024 HBO documentary. Todd has denied these allegations.

Some researchers even suggest that Накамото might not be an individual at all, but a collective.

Why Anonymity Is Crucial

Накамото’s choice to remain anonymous is never just about personal privacy; it touches the core philosophy of Bitcoin’s design. Once his identity is revealed, he becomes a single point of risk for the entire network: government agencies could pressure, arrest, or even kill him; competing powers could bribe or coerce him; any of his statements could trigger market volatility or network splits.

Furthermore, if Bitcoin were centered around a creator figure, it would directly contradict its decentralization ethos. Накамото’s retreat ensures that the project is truly driven by the community, not an individual.

Deeper still, this design embodies Bitcoin’s fundamental promise: trust in mathematics and code, not in persons or institutions. In a system aimed at eliminating the need for trusted third parties, an anonymous creator is the perfect embodiment of this principle.

From Literature to Cultural Icon

As Bitcoin gains increasing institutional recognition worldwide, Накамото’s legacy has entered mainstream culture. In 2021, a bronze bust was erected in Budapest, Hungary, notable for its reflective surface that allows viewers to see their own reflection — symbolizing “We are all Сатоши.” A memorial statue was also erected in Lugano, Switzerland.

In March 2025, the U.S. government signed an executive order establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve — an unimaginable milestone for many early advocates. This shift demonstrates how Накамото’s innovation has evolved from fringe technological experimentation to a national-level asset.

His core motto has also become a guiding principle for the community: “The fundamental problem with fiat currency is trust.” Such statements are frequently cited to explain Bitcoin’s purpose.

Накамото has even become a fashion icon — multiple apparel brands have launched related themed merchandise. In 2022, streetwear brand Vans released a limited edition Накамото collection, further cementing his cultural status as a symbol of the digital revolution.

Deep Technical Legacy

Накамото’s influence extends far beyond Bitcoin itself. Blockchain technology has spawned an entire ecosystem of decentralized applications: from Ethereum and other smart contract platforms to DeFi applications, challenging traditional finance. Central banks worldwide are also developing digital currencies based on blockchain principles, though these centralized versions differ greatly from Накамото’s vision.

By 2025, global cryptocurrency users have reached 500 million, and Накамото’s absence has only strengthened Bitcoin’s mythos — a creator who vanished after giving the world revolutionary technology, allowing it to evolve freely and organically, unbound by any central authority.

The Eternal Mystery

As Сатоши Накамото symbolically turns 50 in 2025, his identity remains a mystery, but his legacy is thriving. Whether an individual or a collective, his creation has transformed finance, offering a truly decentralized paradigm. This story reminds us that the most profound innovations sometimes come from those willing to work anonymously, letting their creations stand independently.