A recently released HBO documentary used a series of interviews and clues to narrow down the identity of Bitcoin BTC/USD creator Satoshi Nakamoto to one man, someone who happens to deny the claim.
Another person who wasn’t Satoshi Nakamoto was entrepreneur and industrialist Henry Ford, who founded Ford Motor Co F.
While Ford didn’t create Bitcoin, he may have been a leading voice in the creation of Bitcoin.
What Happened: Ford proposed creating an energy currency that would replace the gold standard.
“Ford would replace gold with energy currency and stop wars,” a headline reads in the Dec. 4, 1921 issue of the New York Tribune.
Ford wanted to end the control the banking system had on global wealth and the wars caused by monetary policies.
The industrialist planned on creating “the world’s greatest power plant” to demonstrate a plan that would create currency based on “units of power.”
“Under the energy currency system the standard would be a certain amount of energy exerted for one hour that would be equal to one dollar,” Ford told the newspaper.
Ford was never able to advance the energy currency he proposed, but it can be linked to the creation of Bitcoin. Ford, who was born in 1863, died in 1947, decades before the creation of the concept of Bitcoin.
Read Also: 15 Fun Facts About Leading Cryptocurrency Bitcoin
Why It’s Important: Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto released the white paper for Bitcoin in 2008 outlining the creation of a currency created from proof-of-work mining.
Nakamoto did not mention Ford directly in his white paper.
President Richard Nixon announced the end of the U.S. gold standard in 1971. The dollar and gold bullion were officially disconnected in 1976.
Ford is credited with creating the first mass-produced automobile, assembly lines for automobiles, pushes for minimum wage, safety glass in windshields and many other items used by the sector today.
Given his forward-looking ideas, it shouldn’t come as that big of a surprise that Ford was vocal in changing monetary policy.
Some users on the Reddit subreddit r/cryptocurrency have jokingly said Nakamoto could be the reincarnation of Ford.
Read Next:
This article was previously published by Benzinga and has been updated.
Photo: Ford, By Prachaya Roekdeethaweesab via Shutterstock; Bitcoin, Photo by Geralt via Pixabay.
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.