Bitcoin is the first implementation of a concept called "cryptocurrency", first described in 1998 by Wei Dai on the cyprus mailing list, showing the idea of a new form of money that uses cryptography to control its manufacture and transactions, not a central authority. The first specs and evidence of Bitcoin published in 2009 on a cryptographic mailing list by Satoshi Nakamoto. Satoshi left the project at the end of 2010 without revealing much about himself. The community has grown exponentially with many developers working at Bitcoin.
- Satoshi's anonymity often raises unwarranted concerns, many of which are related to misunderstandings about the open source nature of Bitcoin. Bitcoin protocols and software are published publicly and every developer worldwide can review the code or make their own modified version of the Bitcoin software. Just like the current developer, Satoshi's influence is limited to changes that he adopts by others and therefore he does not control Bitcoin. Thus, the identity of the Bitcoin inventor may be relevant today as the identity of the person who invented the paper.
