Hero/Villain

The inside story of the man who invented Bitcoin and his battle to protect it.

In 2008, when the Bitcoin Whitepaper was published online, the technology world changed forever. Hero / Villain: Satoshi: The Man Who Built Bitcoin tells the story of how an awkward Australian security specialist first created something revolutionary under the moniker “Satoshi Nakamoto” and how he spent every moment thereafter either in self-imposed hiding or in court trying to protect his invention.

Initially intended to be a force for good that would allow people to transact directly and inexpensively online, it wasn’t long before Bitcoin became something else: a store of value with a cast of powerful investors hell-bent on manipulating it for their own gain.

For the first time, the real inside story of Bitcoin is laid bare—a story with greed, power, and betrayal at its heart. With firsthand interviews with the man most likely to be Bitcoin’s inventor and those who have fought with him to ensure Bitcoin fulfills its positive and potentially world-changing purpose, Hero / Villain: Satoshi: The Man Who Built Bitcoin serves as an important book in the context of a world where cryptocurrency is in turmoil.