British court rules Craig Wright is not the creator of Bitcoin, ending arguments over the origins of the digital currency
Australian computer scientist Craig Wright, who has claimed since 2016 to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious founder of the Bitcoin network, is the real deal, according to a March 14 ruling by Judge James Mellor reported by BitMEX Research. Not Nakamoto. The lawsuit launched by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) against Wright has reached final arguments in London.
Craig Wright is not Satoshi Nakamoto
A British court has officially ruled that Australian computer scientist Craig Wright, who has long claimed to be Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto, is neither the author of the Bitcoin white paper nor the creator of the cryptocurrency. Judge James Mellor handed down his ruling following a trial between Wright and the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA).
The case, which made headlines around the world, came as a result of COPA’s efforts to prevent Wright from claiming intellectual property rights to Bitcoin technology and suing other developers in the blockchain space. COPA, a coalition dedicated to maintaining open access to cryptocurrency technology, took Wright to court to secure a ruling on his claim to be the digital asset’s inventor.
After hearing closing arguments, Judge Mellor determined that the evidence refuting Wright’s claims was “overwhelming.” Mellor said in a statement that he plans to draft a ruling confirming that Wright is not Nakamoto, is not the creator of Bitcoin, is not the author of the Bitcoin white paper, and is not the brains behind the technology underlying Bitcoin. Yes. The decision marks a significant moment for Bitcoin by potentially ending years of speculation and legal tensions over the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto.
COPA accuses Wright of widespread falsification in Nakamoto claims
Craig Wright’s claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto has been a controversial issue ever since he first made the claim. While some supported Wright, many in the community were skeptical and demanded more conclusive evidence that he was involved in the creation of Bitcoin.
COPA aimed to secure a court injunction to prevent Wright from continuing to claim that he was Nakamoto. Wright faces extensive charges of falsifying documents to support his claim to be the anonymous creator of Bitcoin. In its final statement, COPA emphasized that:
“Dr. Wright has been shown to have lied on a grand scale. He created an entire biographical history, and produced a series of forged documents to support it.”
Legal proceedings began on February 5. On January 24, Wright offered an out-of-court settlement, which COPA rejected.
Founded in 2020, COPA aims to “catalyze the adoption and development of cryptocurrency technology and remove patents as an obstacle to growth and innovation.” Membership includes 33 entities such as Coinbase, Block, Meta, MicroStrategy, Kraken, Paradigm, Uniswap, and Worldcoin.
In 2023, Wright filed legal action against 13 Bitcoin Core developers and several companies, including Blockstream, Coinbase, and Block, for copyright infringement related to the Bitcoin white paper, file structure, and database rights on the Bitcoin blockchain. was taken.