David Schwartz and the Satoshi Nakamoto Puzzle: New Speculations About Bitcoin's Creator

The question of Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto’s true identity has occupied the crypto community for years. Now, a statement from Ripple CTO David Schwartz during the SEC lawsuit has sparked a new wave of speculation: Could Schwartz himself be the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto?

David Schwartz’s Statement: Satoshi Nakamoto Held Large Amounts of XRP

During the long-standing legal battle between the SEC and Ripple Labs, David Schwartz made a statement that raises new questions. The Ripple CTO explained why his company focused on developing a payment system based on XRP instead of choosing Bitcoin.

According to Schwartz, controlling XRP would have given Ripple a strategic advantage over competitors — an advantage Bitcoin never had. In this context, Schwartz made a notable insinuation: Satoshi Nakamoto, the Bitcoin founder, supposedly owned a “huge amount” of XRP in 2017.

This information was shared by Edoardo Farina, CEO of Alpha Lions Academy, on Twitter, sparking intense debate. Farina challenged the common stance of Bitcoin maximalists, who promote BTC as the superior cryptocurrency. A particularly controversial prediction came from Bitcoin supporter Max Keiser in January, who forecasted XRP to crash to $0.01.

Timing and Technical Parallels

A key piece of evidence supporting the Satoshi-Schwartz theory is a striking coincidence in timing. Nakamoto’s exit from the Bitcoin project coincided with the founding of the XRP Ledger (XRPL), developed by David Schwartz along with Arthur Britto and Jed McCaleb starting in 2012.

Another “sign” in the eyes of speculators is the release date: Satoshi Nakamoto published the Bitcoin beta code on November 16, 2009 — exactly on David Schwartz’s birthday. Such coincidences have fueled theories over the years.

Additionally, Nakamoto is said to have praised Ripple’s decentralized concept. However, this praise referred to the original Ripple concept by Ryan Fugger from 2004 — long before Schwartz’s involvement.

Meanwhile, the current price development shows that XRP has grown well beyond earlier predictions, reaching $1.38 (as of March 1, 2026), and has increased by 4.85% in the last 24 hours. In comparison, Bitcoin is trading at $66,940.

David Schwartz’s Clarification: Why the Theory Doesn’t Hold

At his appearance at the annual XRP conference in Las Vegas 2024, Schwartz actively sought to dispel these speculations. He admitted that he technically could have developed Bitcoin but emphasized a crucial point: he is not familiar with the Qt interface, a key element of the early Bitcoin code.

Schwartz also revealed that he only became aware of Bitcoin in 2011 — years after Nakamoto released the source code and had already left the project. This time gap makes the theory of his involvement problematic.

Interestingly, Schwartz also acknowledged that while the rumors may sound “plausible,” they are actually false. A subtle confirmation that the crypto community remains entrenched in its speculation — regardless of the facts.

The Nakamoto Puzzle: Unsolved and Possibly Impossible

The fundamental obstacle of this and similar theories remains: Satoshi Nakamoto’s true identity has never been verified. It is not even certain whether it was a single individual or a group of developers operating under the pseudonym.

Experts suggest that Nakamoto’s XRP holdings — if authentic — might indicate scientific interest in alternative blockchain implementations, without implying personal foundership of other projects. Other analysts speculate that Nakamoto explored various technologies in the early days of crypto without necessarily participating in them.

The questions remain: Will Satoshi Nakamoto’s true identity ever be revealed? And if so, could a prominent name like David Schwartz really be behind it? The answer remains shrouded in mystery and speculation, as it has been for over 15 years.