Original author:Rizzo, Bitcoin Magazine
Original compilation: Felix, PANews
Last week, more than 100 emails written by Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, were made public for the first time. This is the largest addition to information about Satoshi Nakamoto, with many new discoveries. But nothing is more interesting than the mysterious donor behind Satoshi Nakamoto, because regarding funding matters, Satoshi Nakamoto made it clear for the first time:
Provide financial support to those working hard to build the Bitcoin economy
Support for early attempts to price Bitcoin in U.S. dollars
There was no evidence of either of these before the emails were released. Heres what we know so far:
legendary donation
The emails show that a donor known to Satoshi provided $3,600 in funding to the project in 2010.
If calculated at the price of $0.06 per Bitcoin at the time, this money could have purchased more than 58,000 Bitcoins at market price. This donor has made significant sacrifices for the long-term development of Bitcoin.
The conversation about “donors” took place between Martti Malmi (an early Bitcoin developer) and Satoshi Nakamoto, but only lasted a year.
July 2009:
If we have a project that needs funding, I can find some donors, but they want to remain anonymous, which makes it difficult to actually do anything with the funds, Nakamoto said at the start of the conversation.
August 2009:
Martti consulted Satoshi Nakamoto about raising funds for his new Bitcoin trading platform, Bitcoin Market.
Although Nakamoto stated that he wanted this to be done independently of his involvement, he mentioned that funders could be found for the idea.
June 2010:
Satoshi mentioned again that he received a $2,000 donation.
He noted that the money needed to be transferred to Martti so that his identity would not be revealed.
July 2010:
Donors still have not sent any funds to Martti.
July 2010:
Satoshi responded that he would contact the donor again to prioritize the payment.
July 2010:
Martti received $3,600 in donations, which he agreed to use toward project expenses, such as web hosting services.
July 2010:
Satoshi agreed to allocate $1,000 to Martti’s new trading platform.
Notably, Satoshi also believed that the money could be loaned to other businesses that might accept Bitcoin.
Six months later, Satoshi Nakamoto disappeared.
That’s all there is to know about the donor so far. Today, his identity remains a mystery. But it’s clear that this sacrifice from donors helped fuel Bitcoin’s success in its early days. Whoever this person is, Bitcoin owes him a favor.
