Jack Dorsey, the American entrepreneur, is once again the subject of speculation regarding his potential identity as Bitcoin’s elusive creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. A recent post on X has reignited discussions around one of the most significant mysteries in the cryptocurrency world.
On February 15, Seán Murray, president and chief editor of the financial news site deBanked, shared an extensive list of facts, figures, and dates he asserts connect Dorsey to Bitcoin. Dorsey has been a prominent supporter of the cryptocurrency for more than ten years.
However, many contend that the evidence presented is inconclusive.
Jack Dorsey, Satoshi Nakamoto theory
In an April 2020 interview with computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, Dorsey, who co-founded Twitter (now X) and Square, denied being Satoshi Nakamoto, responding, “No, and if I were, would I tell you?”
Despite this, Murray argues that Dorsey is “probably” Satoshi Nakamoto, citing Dorsey’s cypherpunk inclinations dating back to 1996 when he was studying computer science. He noted Dorsey wore a shirt from Hashcash inventor Adam Back and later authored a manifesto in 2001 expressing a desire to make an impact while remaining anonymous.
Birthdays, timestamps, and brute force addresses
A key observation made by Murray is that the first Bitcoin 
BTCUSD transaction coincided with Dorsey’s mother’s birthday on January 11, while Satoshi is said to have mined the last Bitcoin block on March 5, 2010, which is coincidentally Dorsey’s father’s birthday.
In response to this theory, BitMEX Research critiqued the claims, expressing that pinpointing the exact times when Satoshi mined blocks became increasingly complex over time due to the degradation of the “patoshi pattern.”
Murray also suggested that Satoshi registered on the Bitcoin forum on Dorsey’s birthday, November 19.
Additionally, Murray claimed all original Bitcoin source code documents bear timestamps of exactly 4 AM, although it remains unclear which time zone this refers to. He noted that this was a time Dorsey reportedly had listed on his Twitter profile.
Moreover, it’s alleged that Satoshi used “brute force” methods to generate Bitcoin addresses, including one that starts with “jD2m,” which Murray interprets as “Jack Dorsey 2 Mint,” referring to Dorsey’s former home at 2 Mint Plaza in San Francisco.
Dorsey has not verified this claim.
Email hacked, possibly leaking Satoshi’s location
On September 8, 2014, Satoshi’s “GMX” email was reportedly hacked, and Murray asserts that the hacker attempted to extort Satoshi by revealing knowledge of his connection to St. Louis, Missouri.
Murray pointed out that Dorsey was born and raised in this city.
Furthermore, Murray claims that Satoshi inadvertently logged into Internet Relay Chat on January 10, 2009, exposing a real IP address linked to California — coincidentally where Twitter was located, and where Dorsey spent a lot of his time.
WikiLeaks debacle
Satoshi cautioned users against donating Bitcoin to WikiLeaks on December 5, 2010, according to Murray, and shortly thereafter, on December 14, Twitter faced a “secret court order” requiring the release of all its information regarding WikiLeaks. Although Dorsey wasn’t the CEO at the time, he was still a member of the board.
Murray states that Satoshi last logged into the Bitcoin forum a day prior, on December 13.
Murray claims to have supporting evidence linked to 10 of the 15 “chapters” he has developed on Dorsey’s association with Satoshi, and he’s been compiling this information since at least December 23, 2024.
Notably, Dorsey has neither commented on nor denied Murray’s claims.
Critics rampant, as with any Satoshi theory
Numerous users on X have expressed skepticism, questioning how it can be believed that Satoshi, the creator of uncensored currency, would then practice censorship, as Dorsey’s Twitter allegedly did following government intervention in the U.S.
Others doubted whether Satoshi would don a “Satoshi” shirt in public settings, including at the Super Bowl, an event Dorsey attended in 2024.
Whether or not Dorsey is the creator of Bitcoin, cypherpunk Jameson Lopp criticized Murray for being “that guy” who accuses someone of being Satoshi without substantial proof.
“[It] makes you a massive asshole, because you’re painting a target on them,” Lopp stated in a February 2024 post on X. “Even if that person is deceased, you’re jeopardizing their family.”
Murray’s theory regarding Dorsey follows closely behind HBO’s Cullen Hoback’s assertion that Canadian computer scientist Peter Todd is the creator of Bitcoin—a theory largely dismissed by industry experts.
Previous speculation has also included early Bitcoin contributor Hal Finney, Adam Back, and American cryptographer Nick Szabo as possible identities of Satoshi Nakamoto.
