Forget Satoshi Nakamoto, This Ultimate Move Laid the Foundation For Bitcoin

On August 1, 2002, Adam Back published the Hashcash Whitepaper, introducing a basic Proof-of-Work (PoW) idea.

This system would later inspire Satoshi Nakamoto’s design for Bitcoin in 2008.

Many now see Hashcash as the key first move that made the world’s first digital asset possible.

Hashcash Was Not Made for Bitcoin, But It Paved the Way

Over the years, many people held the idea that Bitcoin did not begin with Satoshi Nakamoto. It began with earlier work like Hashcash.

According to history, on August 1, 2002, Adam Back released a paper explaining a system called Hashcash.

It was not made for digital money; rather, it was made to stop spam emails. However, the core idea behind it later became important for Bitcoin.

Hashcash worked by making people solve a small computer puzzle before sending an email.

This task took time and used up computer power. For someone sending a few emails, it was not a problem.

However, for spammers trying to send millions, it made things much harder. This helped slow down spam.

Interestingly, the same method, which is known as proof-of-work, would later be used in the creation of Bitcoin.

For Bitcoin, computers solve much harder puzzles to confirm transactions. This keeps the system secure and makes it hard to cheat.

Adam Back had no idea that his work would one day help form the base for a new kind of money.

Moving forward, in 2008, the person or group known as Satoshi Nakamoto contacted him.

Nakamoto had read the Hashcash paper and used its idea to help build Bitcoin. A year later, in 2009, the Bitcoin network was launched.

From Fighting Spam to Powering Digital Money

Notably, Hashcash was simple, but that is what made it even more useful. It showed that a little bit of work could help protect a system.

In email systems, it helps block junk. In the Bitcoin blockchain it helped block fraud. Bitcoin used the same idea, just on a much larger scale.

Computers on the network, known as miners, had to solve puzzles to earn the right to add new transactions to a block.

This kept the system fair as no one could change the records without doing the work.

This method made it possible to build a monetary system that boycotted the role of a middleman. With the Satoshi Nakamoto Bitcoin, there was no need for banks or payment companies.

Anyone with the right tools could join and help run the network as a miner.

Though Hashcash was not built for this, it showed that the idea could work. It gave Nakamoto and others a model they could learn from.

Proof-of-work was more than just a spam filter. It could also support a digital currency.

Adam Back Steps Into a New Role as CEO

More than two decades after Hashcash, Adam Back has taken on a new job. He will become the CEO of a company called BSTR.

It is currently trading on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the name CEPO. CEPO is a SPAC, or Special Purpose Acquisition Company.

SPACs are companies that raise money first, then look for another company to buy or merge with.

As of July 31, 2025, the stock was trading at $10.95. It had gone up by 9.06% overall, but dropped slightly that day by 1.17%.

Some asset managers warned that SPACs like this can be risky and they advised doing research before investing.

For his early work and communication, Adam Back is one of the few people known to have been in touch with Satoshi Nakamoto before Bitcoin was launched.

His early work on Hashcash helped start a movement. Now, his next move is being watched by both tech and finance communities.