Welcome to This Week in Crypto, your go-to source for the latest stories in the world of cryptocurrencies. This week, we dive into the significant ruling from the UK that Craig Wright is not Satoshi Nakamoto, debunking his long-standing claim to the identity of Bitcoin’s mysterious creator. Meanwhile, the Bitcoin mining sector is witnessing unprecedented highs, with miner revenues and mining difficulty reaching new records amidst a surging market price. In addition, Elon Musk teases the crypto world once again with hints that Dogecoin could become an official payment method for Tesla purchases, sparking excitement and a notable price surge for the “people’s crypto.” Join us as we explore these pivotal developments that continue to shape the cryptocurrency landscape.
UK Court Rules Craig Wright Is Not Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto
In a landmark ruling in the United Kingdom, Judge James Mellor declared that Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist, is not the true identity behind the pseudonym. The verdict came after the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) brought a lawsuit against Wright to halt his assertions of being Nakamoto. Wright’s claims have been marred by accusations of extensive document forgery intended to bolster his position as the Bitcoin founder, leading to an examination of his background and the authenticity of his claims during the trial.
COPA’s legal challenge sought to prevent Wright from making further claims to the Bitcoin legacy, highlighting during the proceedings that Wright had fabricated an “entire biographical history” supported by forged documents. This case against Wright is part of a broader context in which he has actively sued Bitcoin Core developers and major companies over copyright infringements related to the Bitcoin white paper and blockchain database rights. The trial’s outcome not only addresses Wright’s claims, but also touches upon broader issues of copyright and innovation within the cryptocurrency ecosystem by reaffirming the open-source nature of the Bitcoin white paper under an MIT license.
Bitcoin Mining Revenue and Difficulty See All-Time Highs
Bitcoin’s recent rally to an all-time high last week has not only thrilled the crypto community, but also significantly benefited miners, with revenues soaring to a record $78.89 million on March 11th. The surge in mining revenue reflects a remarkable growth over the past year, driven by Bitcoin’s price increase and heightened on-chain activity.
The heightened profitability in Bitcoin mining is accompanied by an increase in mining difficulty, which hit a new historical high of 83.95 trillion hashes on March 14, coinciding with the new Bitcoin price peak of over $73,000. Such adjustments ensure the network’s security and efficiency, even as it scales.
Transaction volume on the Bitcoin network also saw a new record high, reaching 974.7 million transactions over the network’s lifetime. As April (and the Bitcoin halving) approaches, we’ll have to see if Bitcoin achieves new all-time highs once again!
Dogecoin Could Be Used to Buy Teslas in the Future, Says Elon Musk
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has once again made headlines within the cryptocurrency community by suggesting that Dogecoin (DOGE), the popular memecoin, could eventually become an accepted form of payment for purchasing Tesla vehicles. The statement came during a public interaction at Tesla’s Berlin Gigafactory, where an audience member inquired about the possibility of using DOGE to buy Tesla cars in the near future. Musk responded: “At some point I think we should enable that”.
Musk’s advocacy for Dogecoin began after receiving payment requests from Tesla factory employees and SpaceX visitors, leading to the acceptance of DOGE for Tesla merchandise purchases since January 14, 2022, highlighting his support for what he calls “the people’s crypto.”
