I just came across a pretty interesting theory that’s making waves again in the crypto community. It’s about whether David Schwartz, the CTO of Ripple, could possibly be the mysterious Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. Sounds wild, but there are actually some points that make people speculate.

It all started with a statement from David Schwartz in 2021, which resurfaced during the SEC lawsuit against Ripple. Schwartz hinted back then that Satoshi Nakamoto held a huge amount of XRP in 2017. Of course, this immediately stirred the Bitcoin maximalist community, because how can the Bitcoin creator own large amounts of another cryptocurrency? The information was picked up by various analysts and sparked new speculation.

The reason David Schwartz has come into focus is due to several factors. First, there’s the timing: Nakamoto left Bitcoin development in 2010, and right then Schwartz, Arthur Britto, and Jed McCaleb began developing the XRP ledger in 2012. Another interesting point is the date — Nakamoto released the early version of Bitcoin on November 16, 2009, which is also said to be Schwartz’s birthday. Coincidence? Some think not.

But there are also technical arguments against it. Schwartz himself clarified at the XRP conference in Las Vegas 2024 that he has the theoretical skills, but is not familiar with the Qt interface, a key aspect of the early Bitcoin code. He also admitted that he only became aware of Bitcoin in 2011 — which doesn’t fit timing-wise if he was supposed to invent Bitcoin in 2009.

Honestly, the whole theory is probably nonsense. Schwartz himself has admitted that these rumors sound plausible but are not true. Satoshi’s identity remains one of the biggest mysteries in the crypto world. It might even be a group of people behind the name, not just an individual.

In the meantime, the market situation has shifted a bit. XRP is currently trading at $1.45, after rising 2.12% in the last 24 hours. Bitcoin continues to hover in the upper range around $76.69k. The community still loves to discuss such theories — whether David Schwartz is really Satoshi or not, it probably remains a mystery forever.