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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →No. The High Court of England and Wales ruled that Craig Steven Wright did not create Bitcoin and was not Satoshi Nakamoto. Mr Justice James Mellor called the evidence “overwhelming” when he announced the result of the identity trial on 14 March 2024; his detailed written judgment followed on 20 May 2024.
What the court ruled
In COPA v Wright, the court made four declarations in its approved judgment, [2024] EWHC 1198 (Ch):
- Wright was not the author of the Bitcoin white paper.
- He was not the person who used the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto between 2008 and 2011.
- He did not create the Bitcoin system.
- He was not the author of the initial versions of the Bitcoin software.
The declarations answer the central legal question in the case: Wright’s claim to be Satoshi was rejected. They do not amount to a finding about who actually created Bitcoin.
What “the evidence was overwhelming” means
At the end of closing submissions on 14 March 2024, Mellor announced that he had concluded Wright was not Satoshi and described the evidence as overwhelming. The written reasons, delivered on 20 May, explained how he reached that conclusion.
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Mellor said he evaluated a very large number of pieces of evidence iteratively, considering each on its merits and in context. Allegations that Wright had forged documents formed part of that assessment, but the judge said they were only one factor in the overall conclusion. In the judgment’s closing section, he said he had tried to identify reliable evidence supporting Wright’s claim and had found none.
The quoted phrase is the judge’s characterization of the evidence in this trial, not a separate legal test or a finding that resolves Bitcoin’s authorship for all purposes.
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Did the judgment identify Satoshi?
No. The court decided that Wright was not Satoshi Nakamoto; it did not identify the pseudonym’s holder or holders. Mellor said he personally thought several people likely contributed to Bitcoin’s creation, perhaps with one central individual, but expressly gave that view no significant weight in his conclusion. It was a qualified personal observation, not a finding naming Bitcoin’s creator.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the later contempt case fits in
A subsequent contempt judgment, [2024] EWHC 3315 (Ch), restated the identity-trial declarations and summarized the court’s findings that Wright forged documents on a grand scale and lied to the court repeatedly and extensively. It also records that Wright abandoned or discontinued several related claims after the main judgment and that an order dated 29 November 2024 dismissed his application for permission to appeal as totally without merit.
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That later proceeding provides procedural context. The May 2024 judgment is the primary decision on whether Wright created Bitcoin.
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