Log in
- > HBO documentary uncovers “truth” behind Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto
- > US Courts approve FTX bankruptcy plan nearly two years after the exchange’s collapse
- > SUI on the rise as Solana investors move to rival network
- > Payment giants SWIFT unveils digital asset trials in partnership with major banks
HBO documentary uncovers “truth” behind Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto
Money Electric, directed by Cullen Hoback, argues that Canadian developer Peter Todd is the man that invented Bitcoin.
Cryptocurrency’s biggest mystery has bubbled away for over fifteen years. The scene’s finest detectives, investigative journalists and social media experts have all done their best to answer the question: Who is Satoshi Nakamoto?
The pseudonymous inventor of Bitcoin has been inactive for longer than a decade, only adding to the mystique that shrouds them. At this point, not knowing the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto has turned the developer into a larger-than-life legend. It almost makes you wonder if we really want to know who’s truly behind the name?
Scrap all that. Of course we do.
And that’s exactly what HBO’s latest documentary, Money Electric, has supposedly done.
The film’s director, Cullen Hoback, argues that a decade-old message chain from a Bitcoin forum demonstrates enough evidence to reveal that… Canadian Peter Todd is the true name of Bitcoin’s founder.
The conclusion is drawn on the fact that Todd, in an online exchange, finishes Satoshi’s thought as though he forgot which forum account he was logged into.
If you think it’s a pretty long bow to draw, you’re not alone.
Peter Todd himself responded to the speculation, labelling it “very funny” when interviewed for the documentary. He’s had quite a bit of fun with it on social media, too.
Even good old Craig Wright couldn’t help himself from weighing in, after years of claiming that he was the One True Creator of Bitcoin. Which of course, sent the community into a frenzy.
Of course, strong denial is exactly the tactic the real Satoshi Nakamoto would use if their identity were actually revealed…
But, for now, it seems most are convinced that Money Electric’s landmark unveiling was a swing and a miss.
US Courts approve FTX bankruptcy plan nearly two years after the exchange’s collapse
The FTX saga is reaching its resolution after Judge John Dorsey approved a US $16b repayment plan to compensate thousands of victims.
People say they need closure to heal.
One of the darkest chapters in the crypto community’s history is finally coming to a close, with a US court approving FTX’s bankruptcy plan, allowing them to begin repaying victims.
It’s been nearly two years since the then-second-biggest trading platform collapsed, wiping US $8 billion from its customer’s accounts.
But now, with ex-head Sam Bankman Fried behind bars, FTX inoperational and a repayment plan put in place, the blockchain sector has learned a lot and might just be ready to move on.
The presiding judge, John Dorsey, greenlit a US $16b proposal that will see FTX lawyers begin repaying victims in cash.
“Cash” is the key term here – while many creditors pushed to be repaid in kind with crypto, Judge Dorsey rejected this suggestion and instead allowed FTX to compensate victims with interest. The current plan proposes customers will receive a minimum of 118% of their account holdings as of the time of crash (November 2022).
It’s a bit of a kick in the guts for those holding high amounts of Bitcoin, which was at its three-year low at the time. If the BTC was never mismanaged by FTX and held until today, these balances would be worth 3x as much as they were in November 2022.
Nevertheless, the fact that repayments have been given the go-ahead can help restore investor confidence in the industry. If a business messes with your money, it’s not necessarily lost forever.
Repayments will begin in the coming weeks.
SUI on the rise as Solana investors move to rival network
Layer 1 network SUI has risen nearly 100% in the last month on the back of increased community engagement and impressive scalability.
In a fortnight without many good news stories, one blockchain project has stood tall. Sui, the L1 blockchain known for its immense scalability and stringent security measures, has received a lot of attention from investors of late.
This has translated to impressive monthly gains, with the native token SUI surging nearly 100%.
There are several key reasons for SUI’s impressive performance – the key driver being its growing community. The ecosystem’s total value locked (TVL) has sky-rocketed since July, with more than US $1b now stored within the protocol (a 3-month increase of over 100%). This suggests greater engagement from pre-existing investors, as well as newer members joining the community.
Another big move was SUI’s token unlock on the 1st of October, with 64 million SUI distributed among the community. Unlike some other big supply drops, which can cause a short trough in price, investors rallied behind the project and helped SUI gain 40% in the lead-up to the unlock.
Perhaps the most important news is that investors are starting to consider Sui as a higher-growth alternative to Solana. In the last week, 27% of Solana’s outflows have moved directly to SUI – suggesting a current preference for the younger, fledgling project.
Whether the trend is just that – a trend – or a long-term bullish sign remains to be seen. But one thing’s for sure: the Sui ecosystem is on the march.
Payment giants SWIFT unveils digital asset trials in partnership with major banks
SWIFT intends to solve the interoperability crisis that has plagued institutional involvement in the crypto scene.
The institutional rush into the crypto scene is continuing on its merry way, with the international payment messaging service SWIFT launching digital asset trials.
The cooperative, comprising banks and other large institutions, has been trialing the use of digital currency across its international network for several years now. But after months and months of testing, D-Day is finally on the horizon.
The most common use case of digital assets in modern banking has been the development of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Basically, banks are interested in using private or government-controlled cryptocurrencies to improve settlement costs and efficiency.
But now, SWIFT plans to implement the transfer of tokenised assets on its network across public and private blockchains, installing functions like international transactions and the movement of tokenised funds.
The primary goal for SWIFT is to improve interoperability. With several banks developing in-house blockchains, institutions and clients may find it difficult to manage assets across different service providers.
But leveraging the global SWIFT network can help solve this issue, with the payment goliaths aiming to facilitate cross-ledger transfers between banks across the world.
It’s funny to think that just a few years ago banks were almost crypto’s biggest enemy.
If major players like SWIFT continue to dip their feet in the sector, banking could actually become one of digital currency’s greatest allies.
Ben Knight
