From Bitcoin Core to the Trump Administration: Uncovering the Crypto Power Network of Epstein, Peter Thiel, and Putin

Original Author: Byline Times

Original Compilation: TechFlow

Original Link: In Putin’s Orbit: The Crypto Politics of Jeffrey Epstein and Peter Thiel

Introduction: This article reveals how Jeffrey Epstein leveraged his complex international network to push cryptocurrency to the center of geopolitics. Through recently disclosed emails, the article traces the intricate connections between Epstein, Silicon Valley mogul Peter Thiel, former Trump strategist Steve Bannon, and high-level Russian officials. Epstein not only advised Russia to use Bitcoin to 'leapfrog' and reshape the financial system but also injected capital into Blockstream at a critical moment to sustain Bitcoin Core development and was deeply involved in Thiel's venture capital firm. These early crypto-political maneuvers are now, through the rise of figures like J.D. Vance, profoundly influencing global democratic elections and the contest for state power, becoming Epstein's most secretive and destructive legacy.

In 1957, when the Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik, into space, the Western world was caught off guard by a technological and cultural revolution that had been almost unnoticed for the past decade.

In a 2013 email, Jeffrey Epstein invoked the Sputnik analogy to a senior Russian official, stating that "Russia taking a lead in finance, the same thing could happen now." He argued that instead of merely imitating Silicon Valley and chasing Microsoft, Apple, and Google, Russia could "leapfrog the global society by reinventing the 21st-century financial system" through a new type of currency and securitization.

This Russian official was Sergey Belyakov. After graduating from the FSB (Federal Security Service) spy academy, Belyakov served as a senior advisor to Oleg Deripaska, one of Vladimir Putin's most loyal oligarchs and international agents—Deripaska himself was a close partner of Epstein and Labour colleague Peter Mandelson. By 2013, he had become Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia.

Epstein reminded Belyakov that he had helped establish the US derivatives market in the 1970s, which was a precursor to "the more advanced disruptive securitization schemes that technology now makes possible."

Epstein insisted that Russia had a unique advantage in executing the "grand vision" of "creating a new global currency... This is bigger than any single project any government has conceived, and at its core, it's not actually that hard to do."

He had reason to believe his words would be heard at the highest levels.

In a letter dated May 22, 2013, Epstein revealed: "Putin asked me to be present at the economic conference in St. Petersburg. I refused him. If he wants to meet, he needs to set aside real dedicated time and privacy."

Caption: Clues to Epstein's Kremlin connections

This was not baseless chatter. Epstein shared this information with former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who would meet Putin in person a few weeks later and could easily verify the claim through Kremlin channels.

In January 2014, Thorbjørn Jagland (then Secretary General of the Council of Europe) wrote to Epstein saying he was planning to meet the Russian President in Sochi. Epstein told Jagland to "explain to Putin that there should be a sophisticated Russian version of Bitcoin," calling it "the most advanced financial instrument globally."

This is the prism through which to understand the rest of the crypto network built around Epstein, Vladimir Putin, Peter Thiel, and Steve Bannon.

Social Capital

Peter Thiel, co-founder of Palantir and, alongside Elon Musk, a core member of the so-called "PayPal Mafia," is an avid follower of cryptocurrency, valuing its ability to provide an alternative to government-controlled fiat. He once declared: "Bitcoin is what PayPal should have been."

He had long been a target for Epstein.

As early as 2012, Epstein received an email from fintech entrepreneur Ian Osborne suggesting they "have a drink with Peter Thiel," calling Thiel "the best person to study money" and linking him to Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund.

In 2013, Epstein urged former Israeli minister Ehud Barak to "spend some real time with Peter Thiel."

By July 2014, Thiel and Epstein were emailing each other about Bitcoin regulation at the New York Stock Exchange. In September of the same year, Epstein hosted back-to-back meetings with Thiel and William Burns, who was then Deputy Secretary of State in the Obama administration and is now the CIA Director.

By 2015, Epstein proposed Thiel as one of the people Belyakov should meet. Following Epstein's advice, Belyakov contacted Thiel directly, and Thiel asked his executive assistant to schedule an in-person meeting with him for July 2015.

Epstein had multiple interests here. First was cryptocurrency. Emails from MIT show that Joi Ito solicited and accepted donations from Epstein, which helped pay the salaries of Bitcoin Core developers after the Bitcoin Foundation collapsed. Another email thread shows Epstein participated in the 2014 seed round for Bitcoin infrastructure company Blockstream, increasing his allocation from $50,000 to $500,000 after Joi Ito requested more shares in the oversubscribed deal.

But just as Thiel was interested in blockchain currency, surveillance, and data systems like Palantir, Epstein joined in, investing $40 million in Thiel's Valar Ventures. According to Ehud Barak, Thiel and Epstein "co-owned" the firm and used it to take a stake in Israeli surveillance tech company Carbyne.

(A spokesperson for Peter Thiel later denied this, stating Epstein was merely a "limited partner (LP).")

As Epstein and Thiel aligned financially, their political leanings converged as well. Both were exceptionally important early supporters of Donald Trump's first presidential term. A brief exchange in the emails captures the tone of this relationship. Epstein wrote to Peter Thiel: "I like your hyperbole on Trump, it's not a lie," then suggested Thiel "come see me in the Caribbean."

Thiel broke with most of Silicon Valley to publicly endorse Trump and funneled millions into pro-Trump Super PACs. Epstein's correspondence shows he closely followed Trump vs. Hillary polls, campaign staff, and appointments related to Bitcoin and fintech.

In his 2016 Republican National Convention speech, Thiel used Trump's coronation platform to attack "financial bubbles" and praise "new kinds of money," later telling audiences that Bitcoin could be "China's financial weapon" or a hedge against the dollar's reserve status.

As Russia's interference in the US election escalated through massive social media offensives and hacking Hillary's campaign emails, Epstein also arranged a luncheon at his New York townhouse with Trump supporters Thiel, Tom Barrack, and Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin—a seasoned Kremlin operator.

After Churkin's sudden death in 2017, Epstein emailed Thiel: "My Russian ambassador friend died. Life is short, eat dessert first."

"Brexit Is Just the Beginning"

Epstein was a frequent visitor to the UK, even beyond his connections to Ghislaine Maxwell and Andrew Mountbatten, and he closely watched British finance and politics.

In recently disclosed information and emails, he viewed the UK's June 2016 vote to leave the EU as a political realignment and trading opportunity—something that could be shorted financially and leveraged politically. As he wrote to Peter Thiel about the referendum-induced chaos: "Brexit is just the beginning."

To achieve broader goals, beyond his maneuvers in Silicon Valley and Russia, Epstein invested significant time and intellectual capital in a major project led by Steve Bannon—former Trump campaign chief, White House Chief of Staff, Breitbart publisher, and Cambridge Analytica co-founder—who had just lost his White House role and was looking for a new one.

He initially found an opportunity in the pan-European populist "Movement," founded in 2017 by allies including Nigel Farage's associate Laure Ferrari and People's Party leader Mischaël Modrikamen, and initially led by Bannon's friend—Nigel Farage himself.

Registered in Brussels, the organization's mission was to unite "Europe's populist and conservative movements" in defense of "national sovereignty" and "effective national borders."

Behind the scenes, Jeffrey Epstein became a funder and strategist for Bannon's Movement, offering financial advice on evading financial regulations, providing transportation and accommodation, and introducing key European figures.

During the turbulent Brexit transition, as Theresa May's government struggled to find a deal acceptable to the Brexit right, Bannon was flying to the UK to organize opposition.

In 2018, Bannon told Epstein he was meeting with Boris Johnson, Nigel Farage, and Jacob Rees-Mogg to organize them to oust Theresa May. Writer Michael Wolff wrote to Epstein that he was the intermediary with leadership challenger Boris Johnson.

However, the UK was just one stop in Bannon's international populist plan. He soon texted Epstein about his broader European ambitions, claiming: "My advisory role now covers Front National, Salvini's League, Germany's AfD, Swiss People's Party, Orban, Land and Freedom Party, Farage — next May is the European Parliament election — we can go from 92 seats to 200 — block any crypto legislation or anything we want."

By 2019, when Theresa May was