The Mysterious Face Behind Bitcoin

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Bitcoin doesn’t have an official mascot. Still, for at least a few years, Dorian Prentice Satoshi Nakamoto was the closest thing Bitcoin had to a spirit animal — an unassuming everyman who became symbolic of Bitcoin’s power to change the world from humble beginnings.

The Story Begins

Newsweek started it on March 6, 2014, with “The Face Behind Bitcoin,” in which journalist Leah McGrath Goodman detailed a months-long investigation into potential candidates for Satoshi Nakamoto. However, the article hinged on a misunderstanding, as earlier attempts considered the Nakamoto name a pseudonym. Goodman instead searched for Satoshis hiding in plain sight.

Goodman found several individuals named Satoshi Nakamoto, both dead and alive, including a Ralph Lauren menswear designer in New York, and another who died in Honolulu in 2008.

Amazingly, tweets about these findings are still online.

Goodman eventually stumbled across a Satoshi in a database for naturalized US citizens. Dorian’s profile matched someone who might’ve created Bitcoin: a brilliant, obsessively private physicist and engineer with a keen interest in politics and a deep distrust of banks and government constructs.

Dorian was a Japan-born descendant of Samurai on his mother’s side and the son of a priest on his father’s side. He hadn’t used his Satoshi birth name for 40 years, having legally changed it at 23. He signed his name as Dorian S. Nakamoto since then.

Confusion and Media Frenzy

When Goodman approached Dorian outside his home in southern California, he soon called the police. Coincidentally, his home was just a few blocks from Hal Finney’s. Dorian, whose career involved working on classified projects for corporations and the US military, suspected trouble if he spoke with Goodman.

Despite the media frenzy that followed, Dorian expressed in an interview that he had “no connection” to Bitcoin, echoing sentiments a real Satoshi might say.

The chaotic media coverage effectively published his home address, creating uncomfortable situations. Dorian later organized a sit-down with the Associated Press, clarifying his confusion about the inquiry and formally denying any association with Bitcoin.

Dorian revealed that he faced difficulties securing steady work as an engineer or programmer and was under severe financial distress, having recently undergone prostate surgery and a stroke.

Community Support

The Bitcoin community rallied around Dorian, who initially intended to sue Newsweek over the ordeal. Advocate Andreas Antonopoulos announced a BTC fundraiser on Reddit as a “sorry for what happened to you.” Over the next two months, more than 49 BTC flowed into a donation wallet starting with “1Dorian,” valued at around $30,000 at the time.

A separate event raised 17.3 BTC through an auction of a cryptograffiti artwork using Dorian’s likeness. Combined, these donations would be worth roughly $7.5 million today. Dorian had indicated he intended to use the funds as required.

As time went on, Dorian ironically became the de facto face for Satoshi, generating memes, t-shirts, and other art as he embraced the community.

The People’s Satoshi

Ever since the enigmatic founder of Bitcoin left in 2011, fans and onlookers have speculated about Satoshi’s appearance. Images of Satoshi have changed over the years, with the community filling in the narrative gaps. Initially pictured as a younger Asian man, as associations with figures like Julian Assange and Edward Snowden grew, the iconic Guy Fawkes mask became an emblem of the technology’s advantages.

In essence, the story of Dorian S. Nakamoto illustrates how a single misunderstanding sparked a connection between Bitcoin’s creator and an ordinary individual, while showcasing the community’s collective identity.