The number of bitcoins owned by Satoshi Nakamoto is widely regarded as being 1,148,800, based on a detailed analysis that was published in 2013. Evidence shows that the bulk of the first 36,000 blocks was mined by one computer, which can only have been Satoshi. At the time, the reward per block was 50 BTC and of the 1,814,400 awarded, 63% was never spent, leaving Satoshi with a fortune of over 1.1 million BTC.
Today, that would mean Satoshi Nakamoto is worth around $16.8 billion. Add in another $3.4 billion in bitcoin cash, $370 million in bitcoin gold, ignore every fork after that and you wind up with total assets of $20.5 billion. This is all hypothetical of course, since most people believe that Satoshi’s coins will never move for various reasons. Nevertheless, on paper at least, Satoshi Nakamoto’s unclaimed billions place him 37th in the world’s rich list, above Microsoft founder Paul Allen and just $5 billion behind George Soros.
The only Satoshi to officially make Forbes’ billionaires list, incidentally, is cosmetics titan Satoshi Suzuki. With a fortune of ‘just’ $1.3 billion however, he ranks a distant 1,567th. If or when bitcoin hits $60,000, Satoshi will become the world’s richest man, overtaking Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, who have $75.6 and $86 billion respectively.
Satoshis for Satoshi
If Satoshi Nakamoto is one guy, and is still alive, it’s safe to assume he has no desire to touch his cryptocurrency stash. Based on what little is known of bitcoin’s creator, it’s hard to imagine him developing a sudden urge for the high life. Whatever Satoshi’s aspirations, becoming a billionaire playboy is not one. Given that Satoshi Nakamoto owns more bitcoin than anyone else in the world, the last thing he needs is more bitcoin. But that’s exactly what’s been happening, every week, for the past eight years. Not only has the value of Satoshi’s holdings been increasing, but so has their number.