Australian Craig Wright Said To Be Bitcoin Inventor: BBC

Craig Steven Wright has claimed to be the creator of digital currency bitcoin. Wright, an Australian man long rumored to be associated with bitcoin and its blockchain, identified himself as the creator of the crypto-currency, according to a BBC news article on Monday that said he made the admission during an interview. Wright provided proof of his claim as the bitcoin creator by using signature bitcoins believed to be associated with its inventor. Wright said his admission is an effort to end speculation about the identity of the originator of the currency. Back in December 2015, a pair of magazines, Wired and Gizmodo, independently named Wright as among those most likely to be bitcoin's creator. Wright also claimed to be the inventor of bitcoin to U.K. periodical The Economist and style magazine GQ. Bitcoin is an open-source platform and has been increasingly looked at as a new kind of digital payment system. However, it has been volatile, highlighted by its price shedding about 75% of its value after Mt. Gox, one of the largest bitcoin exchanges, announced in 2014 that hundreds of millions of bitcoins were stolen by hackers. As of Monday, one bitcoin was worth about $444, according to price index Coindesk. The currency also has gained some legitimacy by being designated as a commodity by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in mid-September.

Copyright © 2016 MarketWatch, Inc.