London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

UK Court Allows Australian Man Who Claims to be Bitcoin Creator to Serve Copyright Claim

UK Court Allows Australian Man Who Claims to be Bitcoin Creator to Serve Copyright Claim

The blockchain-based cryptocurrency Bitcoin has soared over the last year, hitting an all-time high of $64,000 a few days ago.

London's High Court has allowed lawyers representing Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist who claims to be the creator of Bitcoin, to pursue a copyright infringement case against the operator and publisher of the bitcoin.org website known only as "Cobra." The move is a victory for Wright as he stakes his claim for Bitcoin's white paper, published by mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 – it laid the groundwork and outlined the technology behind the most popular and valuable cryptocurrency in the world.

Cobra's identity and whereabouts are not known, according to Reuters, which has seen the court filings.


Wright, who has residency in Britain, is demanding that bitcoin.org removes the white paper while accusing Cobra of wrongfully controlling the website. He claims he has evidence to support his allegations.

“We’ve been threatened to take down the bitcoin white paper by someone who obviously isn’t the inventor of bitcoin (if he was, that would make him the 25th richest person in the world, which he obviously isn’t),” Cobra told The Guardian in an e-mail.

“Seems like he’s trying to abuse the UK courts to make them try to censor the white paper and harass small websites like us providing education content with his behaviour,” they said.

Mysterious Satoshi


Bitcoin was created by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 – this name, however, is a pseudonym, used by a person or a group of persons, who developed the cryptocurrency.

Nakamoto released the technical manifesto under an MIT permissive free software license.

“I’ve been working on a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party,” he said upon releasing the white paper.

After establishing the cryptocurrency, Nakamoto reportedly continued to work with other developers on Bitcoin until mid-2010, when he gave control of the source code repository and network alert key to software developer Gavin Andresen, and transferred several domains related to Bitcoin to prominent members of the community.

Nobody has heard from Nakamoto since April 23 2011, when he signed off an email saying, “I’ve moved on to other things. It’s in good hands with Gavin and everyone.”

Over the years, several people have been suspected of being the mysterious Bitcoin developer with – Wright being one of them.

Two separate investigations by Wired and Gizmodo suggested that the businessman could be the mysterious figure after Wired received leaked material from a source close to Wright, while Gizmodo received a similar collection of documents from a hacker.

Several days later, however, Wired pointed at several serious inconsistencies, raising concerns that Wright could be “a brilliant hoaxer who very badly wants us to believe he did” invent Bitcoin.

One Man vs Bitcoin Community


Since then Wright has made a career from his claim to be Nakamoto. The businessman has eagerly sued prominent Bitcoiners for challenging his claim, leaving the community mulling over whether to remove the white paper from websites or to face one of the expensive lawsuits.

According to Wright, no other entity is authorised to host the Bitcoin white paper since he is, as he claims, Nakamoto. This, however, is at odds with the open-source, decentralised nature of the cryptocurrency.

Square, the Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA), an alliance formed by Square Crypto to pool patents and preserve the industry’s open-source spirit, has recently filed a lawsuit against Wright over his copyright claims.


Wright is still yet to provide conclusive evidence to his claim.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×