By Susie Violet Ward · Forbes · 20 December 2024
Craig Wright, the Australian who claimed to be the creator of bitcoin, was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years, after being found in contempt of court. The contempt arose from his £911 billion lawsuit against Bitcoin Core developers and Square Up Europe Limited, which breached an injunction issued after Mr Justice Mellor found in March 2024 that there was “overwhelming evidence” Wright is not Satoshi Nakamoto.
The proceedings were brought by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance, represented by Jonathan Hough KC of Bird & Bird. Wright did not attend the hearing, citing travel costs, and declined COPA’s offer to pay his expenses. He appeared by video link for the sentencing but would say only that he was in Asia. Mr Justice Mellor found each contempt proved and ordered Wright to pay £144,000 in legal costs within 14 days.