Craig Steven Wright, an Australian entrepreneur and self-declared cyber security expert, has claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of bitcoin.

The announcement, if true, would end years of speculation about who is responsible for creating the digital currency.

On Monday, Mr Wright published a blog post offering cryptographic proof that he is the creator of the digital currency. Reflecting on a quote from philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, Mr Wright said in his post: “Since those early days, after distancing myself from the public persona that was Satoshi, I have poured every measure of myself into research. I have been silent, but I have not been absent.”

The BBC and the Economist were given access to Mr Wright ahead of the announcement on the condition that they did not publish their articles before his post. The Economist said: "Our conclusion is that Mr Wright could well be Mr Nakamoto, but that important questions remain. Indeed, it may never be possible to establish beyond reasonable doubt who really created bitcoin."

In December, Mr Wright was identified as Mr Nakamoto in stories by Wired and Gizmodo which pointed to supposedly leaked emails and documents claiming proof he and a colleague, Dave Kleiman (now deceased) were the co-inventors of the crypto-currency.

Raided

Hours after the publication of those stories, Mr Wright’s home in a leafy suburb of Sydney’s north shore and his work premises were raided by Australian federal police in connection to an investigation by the Australian Tax Office. Neighbours said at the time that Mr Wright and his family had already moved to London.

Jon Matonis, a founding director of the Bitcoin Foundation, published a blog yesterday about a “private proof session” in March.

“I had the opportunity to review the relevant data along three distinct lines: cryptographic, social, and technical. Based on what I witnessed, it is my firm belief that Craig Steven Wright satisfies all three categories.” – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016