Peter Todd forced into hiding after HBO’s ‘Satoshi’ film

Peter Todd, a Canadian cryptographer and developer recently “identified” as the mystery creator of Bitcoin in an HBO documentary, has reportedly been forced into hiding.

On Oct. 9, a HBO documentary film “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery,” aired. The big reveal, after a major hype ahead of its premiere, was that Peter Todd is the creator of Bitcoin (BTC) – Satoshi Nakamoto.

Todd refuted the claims that he is the pseudonymous BTC creator after the film concluded with him as Satoshi. Now, according to Wired, the Canadian is in hiding amid safety concerns.

‘I’m not Satoshi’

In remarks shared with the publication, Todd maintains he’s not Satoshi and that the film’s conclusion has made him a target. Harassment has included people asking for money, with one individual sending 25 emails requesting funds to pay off a loan.

“Obviously, falsely claiming that ordinary people of ordinary wealth are extraordinarily rich exposes them to threats like robbery and kidnapping,” Todd said in the interview.

He added that Satoshi “didn’t want to be found,” and that it’s unhelpful to put people in the spotlight for something they aren’t.

Todd told WIRED that the documentary’s maker, Cullen Hoback, used the Satoshi link for marketing purposes. However, Hoback claims there is a strong case for the inferences made in the film, despite Todd’s denials and misdirections.

Interest in unmasking the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto has surrounded the crypto space since the individual, or group of people, thought to be behind the world’s largest digital asset, disappeared from the public in 2010.

Todd’s not the only face to have been pinned as the Bitcoin creator.

Ahead of the HBO film, bets shifted heavily from cryptographers Len Sassaman and Nick Szabo, to Blockstream founder Adam Back. Others to have been “identified” over the years include Hal Finney, a pioneer in the Bitcoin community who received the first ever BTC transaction.

A U.K court ruled in March 2024 that Australian computer scientist Craig Wright is not Satoshi.