Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, may now surpass Bill Gates in wealth, with holdings estimated at over $108 billion, according to recent onchain research.
Conor Grogan, director at Coinbase, revealed that Nakamoto could own 1.096 million BTC, based on findings from Arkham Intelligence. In a Feb. 5 post on X, Grogan stated:
“This research points to Satoshi owning 1.096M BTC, $108B worth, making them wealthier on paper than Bill Gates.
At the time of writing, Bill Gates, former Microsoft CEO, has a net worth of around $106 billion, ranking him as the 16th richest person globally, according to Forbes. If Nakamoto’s holdings are accurate, it would place the Bitcoin creator just above Gates on the global wealth rankings.
Can Kraken Uncover Satoshi’s True Identity?
Speculation around Nakamoto’s identity has resurfaced as Grogan highlighted possible links to centralized exchange Kraken. Nakamoto’s last known interactions with a CEX reportedly occurred through Cavirtex, a Canadian exchange acquired by Kraken in 2016.
However, at the time of these transactions, Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations were not widely enforced in the crypto space. While Kraken introduced KYC protocols as early as 2014, full KYC compliance for all users wasn’t t mandatory until 2017-2018. It remains unclear if Cavirtex required KYC before its acquisition.
Cointelegraph has reached out to Kraken and Arkham Intelligence for further details on the Nakamoto-linked wallet and its transaction patterns.
As Bitcoin’s price continues to surge and new research emerges, the mystery of Satoshi Nakamoto’s identity and fortune remains one of the crypto world’s most fascinating stories.
Source: Cointelegraph
