Is there a Bitcoin conspiracy? According to some Bitcoiners, powerful forces are controlling the development of BTC on a global scale. The cryptomarket is unregulated. Therefore, market manipulations do occur. These manipulations have also led to the development of wide-ranging conspiracy theories focused around BTC. Many Bitcoin conspiracy theorists now claim to have credible evidence to back up (at least portions) of their claims.

Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin, remains an anonymous figure in the cryptomarket. His (or her) anonymity has fueled the flames of conspiracy theorists and Bitcoiners alike. Given these circumstances, it’s easy to see how one’s imagination might wonder. Let’s take a moment to investigate the top seven Bitcoin conspiracies.

BTC Signals the End Times

This theory revolves around the Bible book Revelations, chapter 13. This Bible verse discusses the end of the world, explaining the “Mark of The Beast.” In the story, all people must have the Mark of the Beast to survive. These marks are necessary to buy food and live in this cashless dystopian society.

While Bitcoin does represent a shift to a cashless society, it’s highly unlikely that it’s the devil’s pawn. A simple Google search can reveal numerous instances when religious fanatics opposed scientific and mathematical advancements throughout history. For example, the famous physicist Galileo was convicted of heresy in 1633 for claiming the Earth was not the immovable center of the universe.

Bilderberg Bitcoin

This Bitcoin conspiracy claims that members of the Bilderberg group, the Federal Reserve, and Mastercard conspired to take over the BTC market through the use of subsidiaries. The Bilderberg group is a private organization that consists of many of the most influential people in the world. The theory is that the Bilderberg group, through its subsidiary, AXA Strategic Ventures, invested $55 million into Blockstream.

Blockstream is one of the primary funders of the Bitcoin core development team, and the Bilderberg Group contains some of the world’s wealthiest people. This strategy of investing heavily into BTC’s development would give significant control to the triad if the theory proves correct. It would also prove to be a considerable commodification of Satoshis’ original vision for a decentralized currency.

NSA

The NSA Bitcoin conspiracy claims that the National Security Agency invented the SHA-256 algorithm. SHA-256 is the mathematical protocol that BTC’s Proof-of-Work system functions within. The theory surfaced following the 2013 revelations that the NSA is spying, or at least has the capabilities to spy, on all mobile web activity via a built-in backdoor. Believers in this theory claim that it’s possible the NSA installed a similar backdoor algorithm within the SHA-256 protocol.

This theory does not hold up well when you consider that SHA-256 is an open-algorithm that the best cryptographers in the world have examined for over fifteen years without discovering flaws. Also, the National Institute of Standards and Technology still lists SHA-256 as a secure protocol.

China Invented Bitcoin

This Bitcoin conspiracy revolves around the actions of the Chinese government. The theory claims that China is the original developer of the cryptocurrency. While the concept does seem far-fetched, China houses potentially the largest number of BTC miners in the world. They are also home to the largest BTC mining rig manufacturer in the world, Bitmain.

Last year, China clamped down on the cryptomarket by banning Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and closing all Chinese exchanges. At the same time, China was dominating the mining sector, and the government was still researching blockchain. This maneuver created a situation in which Chinese citizens were restricted in their crypto access while the nation’s government continues to increase their crypto activities. It could be that the country recognizes BTC’s future value, but these contradicting strategies can lead you to wonder, what is China’s real motives?

AI Satoshi

Bitcoin contains 31 thousand lines of coding. Professional coders will tell you that this is not a large amount. To put the size of the BTC protocol into perspective, Windows has 50 million lines of code. Still, the quality of the coding and impact of the technology has led a small group of Bitcoiners to believe Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed BTC.

Bitcointalk discussions regarding the probability of this theory are plentiful. To date, no hard evidence has surfaced, and it’s hard to imagine that someone could program an AI so advanced. Despite the lack of evidence surrounding this claim, it may continue to exist in the minds of a small group of Bitcoiners until Satoshi Nakamoto comes forward, if he ever does.

A Single Trader Orchestrated Mt. Gox Crash

Evidence presented by BitcoinMarkets on Reddit seems to link the Mt. Gox collapse to the movements of one trader. Mt. Gox was the largest crypto exchange in the world until it collapsed in February 2014 due to multiple hacks. The exchange’s collapse caused the entire BTC market to tank for months.

According to this newly found evidence, on December 22 2017, a trustee moved 6,000 BTC which caused the value of the coin to drop from $16,000 to $10,000 briefly. The same seller dumped another 6,000 BTC on January 31 and yet another 6,000 BTC on February 5.

It’s possible that this single trader was a group of individuals operating from the same BTC address. The data seems to indicate a concerted effort to tank the market. Mt. Gox’s ghost appears to never leave the crypto space for too long. This latest reincarnation is just a part of a long string of infamous Mt. Gox incidents including crashing the market and being the recipient of 80 accidentally sent BTC.

Governments Are Buying up All the Bitcoin

This last conspiracy theory doesn’t take much to imagine. According to believers of this theory, governments around the world are secretly buying up all of the BTC in the world.

While it may be difficult to prove precisely how much BTC governments own, there has been an uptick in crypto confiscations. These confiscations have led to some serious funding boosts for the countries involved. There is a list of countries, including the US, which isn’t officially storing BTC but has made millions from selling confiscated coins.

Bitcoin Conspiracy Possibilities

BTC has a history of being involved in wide-ranging conspiracy theories. The mysterious origins of this cryptocurrency are sure to spark the imagination of theorists for years to come. You should expect to see even more Bitcoin conspiracies develop as the effects of blockchain technology continue to spread globally. For now, it’s wise to take these concepts with a grain of salt.