Happy Wednesday! In today's Daily, HBO's documentary Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery claims that early Bitcoin developer Peter Todd is the mysterious creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. Todd quickly denied the assertion with a post stating, "I'm not Satoshi" on X.
The nearly two-hour documentary, billed as a "globe-trotting investigation" aimed at solving one of the internet's greatest mysteries, interviewed various Bitcoin figures and analyzed multiple clues before focusing on Todd. Filmmaker Cullen Hoback pointed to a 2010 BitcoinTalk forum reply where Todd supposedly concluded Satoshi's post. The silence from both accounts following the post and Todd's later implementation of the replace-by-fee feature has fueled speculation.
Among the supporting evidence cited by Hoback were Todd's pseudonym "John Dillon," the shared British/Canadian spellings between Todd and Satoshi, and Todd's posting schedule that aligned with his student life. Additionally, Hoback mentioned Todd's past discussion about "sacrificing" bitcoins, interpreted as a reference to destroying Satoshi's estimated 1.1 million BTC, currently valued at around $68 billion.
However, Gregory Maxwell, another former Bitcoin developer, critiqued the documentary's conclusions, pointing out that Todd's account was not linked to his identity at the time. Todd agreed with Maxwell's observations, suggesting that Hoback should have consulted experts to validate his theories.
In other news, global asset manager VanEck has launched a new venture capital unit called VanEck Ventures, aiming to raise $30 million for its first fund. Led by former Circle Ventures leaders Wyatt Lonergan and Juan Lopez, the fund will focus on early-stage startups at the intersection of fintech, crypto, and AI, targeting investments in stablecoin and tokenization platforms.
The U.S. government has indicated that Bitfinex may be the sole victim of the infamous 2016 hack, which involved Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, known as "Razzlekhan." Following the hack, iFinex stated that customers had the option to redeem their BFX tokens. However, to be cautious, the government requested the court to allow Bitfinex account holders to submit claims ahead of sentencing.
Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research, has agreed to hand over the majority of her remaining assets to settle a lawsuit from the FTX estate, excluding assets already forfeited or used for legal fees. This agreement includes her commitment to cooperate with ongoing investigations.
Matt Hougan, CIO at Bitwise, speculated that a non-Democratic sweep in U.S. elections, coupled with additional Fed rate cuts and no major crypto setbacks, could lead to a significant increase in Bitcoin prices, potentially exceeding $80,000. Analysts suggest that a Trump victory could push Bitcoin to highs between $80,000 and $90,000, while Kamala Harris's win may see prices drop back to around $40,000.
In the next 24 hours, U.S. CPI inflation data will be released, with estimates indicating a MoM increase of 0.1% and a YoY rate of 2.3%. Additionally, U.S. jobless claims figures will be announced simultaneously, and Bitcoin Amsterdam will conclude in the Netherlands.
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