Since the dawn of Bitcoin more than a decade ago, people have been speculating and creating mythology around who the enigmatic Satoshi Nakamoto might be. Apparently using a pseudonym, Nakamoto created and coded the mother of all digital currencies, dropped the Bitcoin whitepaper on the world, hung around for a couple of years—long enough to amass more than 1 million BTC—and then disappeared into the ether.
There are many stories and plenty of conjecture all over the internet about Nakamoto’s identity. Some of the cypherpunks are suspects like Nick Szabo, Hal Finney, Adam Back, and even a man actually named Nakamoto. Others surmise that Bitcoin was crafted by a group of people or an organization *cough* the CIA *cough*. But among all of the tall tales, there’s a suspicious void that you may have noticed: not a lot of people, other than congresswoman Carolyn Malone, talk as if Satoshi Nakamoto could be a woman.
I’m now on the case, however; so, breathe easy, my friends.
7 clues that Satoshi Nakamoto was (almost certainly) a woman
Hold on, before you start revealing your stance as a dangerous Sato(SHE) denier, let me just remind you about one thing: sexism. Now are you ready to hear me out? I thought so.
SatoSHE Nakamoto
Firstly, I would invite you to consider the fact that the internet says Satoshi is a unisex name. Just based on that, we definitely cannot rule out the possibility that a woman decided to use it. And as clever as we know Nakamoto was (whose name, fittingly can mean “wise” or “quick-witted”), it would make sense that (s)he would embed a female pronoun into a carefully chosen pseudonym: SatoSHE.
Quiet female influence
There are many theories out there about why Nakamoto chose to use a pseudonym. It’s true that privacy, anonymity, and distributing power align with the very philosophy Nakamoto promoted in the Bitcoin whitepaper. But, another interpretation could be that, since the dawn of time, women have worked flawlessly from behind the scenes, pulling strings, influencing people without needing to be the “frontman” of an operation. I mean, do we or do we not remember Helen of Troy?
Not many women cypherpunks
Back in the gestational days of digital currency, when all the cypherpunks we remember and honor today were working on creating a viable digital currency, there were not a lot of women involved. If there were, they’re not well remembered. It’s likely that Nakamoto knew that and acted accordingly.
Lending credibility to Bitcoin
Because there were are fewer women in the tech and development space than men, perhaps Nakamoto foresaw that she would only get traction and credibility with a pseudonym that everyone could easily assume to be a man. There was a big question mark as to whether Bitcoin would succeed. Mass adoption was critical and that was highly doubtful back in 2009. If the creator was presumed (or confirmed) to be a woman, the likelihood of Bitcoin becoming the success it is today may have become even smaller.
She had to get back in the kitchen
As we all remember, Satoshi Nakamoto disappeared without a trace in 2011. The development of Bitcoin had been an involved process for everyone contributing to it. The drama even ramped up at times and, it seems, Nakamoto didn’t have the time or interest to continue as a de facto “leader” of Bitcoin. After all, when the family is hungry, they’re hungry.
Leaving Bitcoin as a legacy for future generations
So, let’s say Satoshi Nakamoto had to move on to other projects that were complex tech things we either never heard about in connection with Nakamoto or which didn’t make a revolutionary change to the world economy the way Bitcoin did. Was cryptocurrency Nakamoto’s last, best project? Or was she leaving a legacy for her kids and the rest of the kids in a world that wasn’t looking out for their financial future? You tell me which is more likely!
Women are tokenized *ba dum tss*
The final reason that suggests it’s harder and harder to deny the possibility of Satoshi Nakamoto being a woman is the fact that, if she was known to be a woman, especially now in 2024, she would most certainly become a token. And, with the explosion of tokenization in the crypto world, that would generate a batch of meme coins the likes of which the world could not endure.
I’m sure Satoshi Nakamoto, for all her wisdom, would have seen that coming. So she let the rumors fly, encouraged the world to theorize, and disappeared in a puff of smoke. It seems like the only likely explanation.
Women in crypto tech today
Nowadays, there is a growing number of women in crypto. There are even female crypto millionaires. But despite this growth and increased visibility like the show Halt and Catch Fire showcasing women as key players in the tech space back in the 80s, the reality in STEM and tech fields in general is still lopsided when it comes to the male/female ratio. Some studies reveal that only 25% of the computing workforce are women.
There are some high-profile women in the tech and crypto space. People like Elizabeth Rossiello, Elizabeth Stark, and Galia Benartzi. They are making contributions that we all love to see. But while an intelligence gap theory is becoming less common, some would argue that women simply tend to be less interested in tech than men. And some people promote the idea that girls’ interest can be nurtured in high school and beyond by providing more opportunities and showcasing more female role-models. Whose footsteps are better to follow in than Satoshi Nakamoto herself!
The takeaway: Satoshi Nakamoto's true identity
It’s quite likely that we will never know the true identity of the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, though I think there are some pretty interesting clues that we shouldn’t overlook.
On a certain level, it’s in keeping with the philosophy of early crypto enthusiasts like the cypherpunks and Nakamoto, her/himself. A digital currency that is not owned or controlled by anyone is expressly what Nakamoto wanted to create—so it seems fitting that revealing Nakamoto’s own identity would only cloud the world’s view of Bitcoin and the whole digital currency ecosystem that has grown up as a result. But, while that all makes sense and sounds logical, perhaps we could all benefit from a little wild speculation, like the idea that Satoshi Nakamoto could have been a woman! After all, how else do we come up with world-changing new ideas, if not by thinking outside the box?
What do you think? Who could Nakamoto have been—what are your theories? Comment on Twitter using the hashtag #notmynakamoto and tag @decentralpub for a chance to be featured in an upcoming article.
About the Author
Michael Hearne
About Decentral Publishing
Decentral Publishing is dedicated to producing content through our blog, eBooks, and docu-series to help our readers deepen their knowledge of cryptocurrency and related topics. Do you have a fresh perspective or any other topics worth discussing? Keep the conversation going with us online at: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
