Is there a Bitcoin Champion?

Curious to know who is referred to as the “Bitcoin Champion”? You can join the informative journey into the realm of crypto-competition champions alongside the origin tree of Bitcoin, all in this guide today.

What do we mean when referring to a “Bitcoin Champion”? Intrigues and mysteries seem to fill the world of Bitcoin, creating their share of the large-than-life figures in the ongoing digital currency debate. 

But, can there really be one reigning figure over all who has ever championed Bitcoin? To answer this question, one has to go back into the roots of Bitcoin, explore who throughout its history changed the course, and who owns most of today’s.

Who is the Father of Bitcoin?

Backed by mystery, ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’ is the name behind the creation of Bitcoin. He is widely regarded as the “father of Bitcoin” because the creation back in 2008.

It introduced it to the world in a white paper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” This outlined a vision for Bitcoin and how it could be used as a decentralized digital currency that did not rely on any central authority from a government or a bank.

He is credited with the mining of the first-ever Bitcoin block, called the Genesis Block, and he is estimated to have mined around 1 million Bitcoins.

But then, none of these has ever been moved or spent, and a big question that lingers on the minds of many is whether Satoshi is still around or if the fortune has been lost forever. 

Who Has the Most Bitcoin?

While many people immediately assume Satoshi Nakamoto has the most Bitcoin because of the untouched hoard of 1 million BTC, several others have accrued quite a bit over the years. Let’s see some of the largest holders below.

1. The Winklevoss Twins

The famous twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, known through their litigation against Mark Zuckerberg regarding Facebook, had become some of the first investors in Bitcoin.

Reports have them owning around 100,000 Bitcoins, which makes them one of the largest owners in the globe. They also founded the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, which further solidified their positions as prominent figures.

2. Tim Draper

When billionaire venture capitalist bought almost 30,000 Bitcoins in a US government auction back in 2014, he made headlines.

Though the coins had been seized from the notorious online marketplace ‘Silk Road,’ and he saw that as a golden opportunity. His investment paid off handsomely when Bitcoin’s value soared over the years, and today, he’s a big advocate.

3. MicroStrategy (Michael Saylor)

One of the biggest surprises and most important players in the Bitcoin world comes in the form of a business intelligence company called ‘MicroStrategy.’

Today, the company has accrued more than 100,000 bitcoins, while Saylor has become one of the most outspoken advocates as both a hedge against inflation and as a store of value.

4. El Salvador

In 2021, it was El Salvador that became the first country in the world to adopt Bitcoin as a legal tender. The government, under the leadership of President Nayib Bukele, started buying Bitcoin and has continued to add to its reserves.

Due to the nature of its decentralized system, Bitcoin has never been able to know for certain who holds the most, since many wallets remain anonymous.

Who Owns Bitcoin Now?

Arguably, the most interesting thing that makes Bitcoin so fascinating is the fact that it works decentrally. Unlike the traditional version of money, no single ownership or control rests under one individual, company, or government.

Instead, this digital currency works on decentralized nodes of computers for verifying a transaction and maintaining the blockchain for Bitcoin, like:

1. The Bitcoin Community

Developers work on improving the Bitcoin codebase with proposals for change through a process known as Bitcoin Improvement Proposals (BIPs).

Miners validate transactions and are incentivized with newly minted coins for adding transactions into the blockchain. Users have the right to hold, trade, and use Bitcoin as a form of currency, giving them control over it.

2. Miners

Miners play a very important role in securing the Bitcoin network and confirming transactions. They solve complex mathematical puzzles using super-powerful computers, which confirm a set of transactions on the blockchain.

3. Exchanges and Custodians

Some of the large stockpiles are found in the hot wallets of cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken. This puts them in a position to have some leverage in the market, as they ultimately control the flow of Bitcoin coming on and off the market.

Despite the fact that these groups do hold a great deal of influence, it is actually a beauty of Bitcoin that it is decentralized. No one single entity can manipulate or control the network, and modifications to Bitcoin’s code are open source- anyone can contribute if they’d like.

A Final Note

Whether there is, in fact, a “Bitcoin Champion” is a matter of our definitions, then quite evidently, ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’ is that champion. But Satoshi’s anonymity and his disappearance preclude him from the role of modern champion.

Amongst the individual entities that are said to have most of the Bitcoin are the Winklevoss twins, Michael Saylor, and even Grayscale.

All of these individuals and institutions have gathered a large amount of Bitcoin under their belt and are very vocal about being leading voices within this community.

But then, in the greater scheme of things, Bitcoin’s truest ambassador has come in the form of its decentralized network. The value of Bitcoin, to an extent, stems from the fact that no single person or entity controls it.

Its open-source nature, maintained by a global community of developers, miners, and users, has ensured that Bitcoin remained resistant to censorship, control, and centralization.

Sure, there can be large holders and extremely influential people, but really, the real underlying technology and the general people using and supporting it are the ultimate champions of Bitcoin.

This is how Bitcoin belongs to no single person or group; it belongs to everyone. Be it from 0.01 BTC to 100,000 BTC, any holder of this asset is a part of the network, and thus all together we are champions in our own way of this revolutionary technology.