In February 2026, the US Department of Justice released over 3 million pages with shocking revelations about Jeffrey Epstein. Surprisingly, it has come to light that Jeffrey Epstein was involved with Crypto from its early days.

Here are some interesting facts about Jeffrey Epstein and his connection with Crypto that have come to light.

The Truth About Epstein-Bitcoin Connections

1. Jeffrey Epstein’s Coinbase connection.

Epstein invested $3 million in Coinbase’s 2014 Series C round. 

Through his US Virgin Islands entity, IGO Company LLC, Epstein purchased $3,001,000 worth of Coinbase equity in December 2014, when the company was valued at roughly $400 million pre-money. 

Brock Pierce introduced the deal via Blockchain Capital. Publicly reported emails indicate that Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam was aware of and discussed a potential meeting with Epstein in New York. 

This gave Epstein a small stake (less than 1%) in what became a major Crypto exchange. 

2. Epstein and Bitcoin’s Developers

Reportedly, Epstein contacted early Bitcoin developers in 2011. 

Investor Jason Calacanis introduced Epstein to Bitcoin figures. He emailed developer Amir Taaki praising the idea but noting downsides and requesting a call. Taaki arranged contact but later cut ties after background research. 

Epstein also attempted to reach out to Gavin Andresen via the same network; Andresen declined. 

In fact, Epstein had claimed in 2016 to have spoken with “some of the founders of Bitcoin.” In emails pitching a Sharia-compliant digital currency, Epstein wrote he had discussed ideas with Bitcoin founders who were “very excited.” No names, proof, or specifics were provided, and the claim remains unverified. 

3. Did Epstein Have Any Influence Over Bitcoin?

Publicly reported emails indicate Epstein discussing steering Bitcoin’s direction through investments, connections, and funding leverage. 

However, Bitcoin’s design prevented Epstein from exerting control.

He interacted with figures like Jeremy Rubin (MIT DCI affiliate) on opportunities through 2018, reflecting his pattern of accessing elite tech circles after his 2008 conviction. 

Despite investments and donations, Bitcoin’s open-source nature, global contributors, and consensus rules ensured no single person, including Epstein, could control the protocol, code commits, or network. 

No evidence shows backdoors, protocol changes, or mining dominance linked to him. 

Debunked Myths Around Epstein and Bitcoin

But amid verified links and speculation, several myths have emerged that wildly exaggerate Epstein’s real influence on Bitcoin.

Here are some common claims about the Epstein-Bitcoin connection that have already been debunked or dismissed.

1. Epstein funded 75% or most of Bitcoin’s code.

The Bitcoin Foundation, the organisation that had previously supported Bitcoin development through advocacy, coordination, and limited developer funding, collapsed in 2015.

Following this, there was a short period where Bitcoin Core developers lacked stable funding.  During this gap, grants from the MIT Digital Currency Initiative (MIT-DIC) helped pay the salaries of a small number of maintainers. 

The recently released Epstein files revealed that Epstein donated $525,000 to MIT’s Digital Currency Initiative, leading to the rumour that Epstein funded Bitcoin’s code.

However, the money went to MIT, not directly to Bitcoin or its developers. This support was temporary and limited, intended to keep development going during a fragile phase. It did not give Epstein control over Bitcoin’s code or direction.

Available evidence suggests that Bitcoin’s codebase has been developed over more than a decade by thousands of contributors, mostly volunteers and later companies. Public commit history shows that no single donor or institution funded anything close to a majority of Bitcoin development.

MIT DCI funding covered only a small fraction of total development, for a short time, and only for a few developers.

Emails later revealed MIT officials describing the funding as a “big win” for keeping Bitcoin development alive, not as ownership or influence.

2. Epstein created Bitcoin or was Satoshi Nakamoto. 

No documents, code, emails, wallets, or technical evidence in the millions of pages link Epstein to Bitcoin’s 2008 whitepaper, early mining, or Satoshi’s pseudonym. Claims rely on speculation, not facts. In fact, this theory was debunked in multiple analyses.

3. Epstein ran Bitcoin mining operations on his islands. 

No transaction records, hardware evidence, wallet links, or island-related documents support large-scale mining. No credible reports confirm this. 

No known Bitcoin wallet address or ID is publicly linked to Jeffrey Epstein in the 2026 DOJ files or any credible reports. The documents detail his equity investments (e.g., $3M in Coinbase, ~$500k in Blockstream) and funding (e.g., MIT DCI donations), but mention no personal Crypto wallets, holdings, transactions, or blockchain addresses.

Bitcoin’s Resilience

Taken together, these facts highlight a key feature of Bitcoin’s design: resilience. 

Even during vulnerable periods, such as after the Bitcoin Foundation’s collapse, Bitcoin continued to function and evolve. This structure ensures that Bitcoin’s network, rules, and security remain independent of powerful individuals or temporary sources of funding.

Final Thoughts

Stories like this show why separating facts from speculation is essential in Crypto, and why doing your own research matters. Markets move fast, narratives spread faster, and understanding the underlying facts helps you make informed decisions instead of reacting to rumours or fear.