A newly revealed email exchange from 2011 shows an attempted contact between early representatives of the cryptocurrency world and Jeffrey Epstein.
Allegedly, in 2011, Jason Calacanis provided Jeffrey Epstein with the contact information of Bitcoin developers Gavin Andresen and Amir Taaki. This development occurred just months after Bitcoinâs anonymous founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, left the project. It is known that Gavin Andresen also held a meeting with the CIA that same month.
Amir Taaki, who made a statement on the matter on social media, confirmed that Epstein had sent him an email. Taaki stated that he was seen as âlike the CEO of Bitcoinâ at the time, and claimed that Epsteinâs reason for contacting them was not for investment or a friendly relationship, but for the purpose of obtaining information.
Taaki described the process with these words:
âAt 22, I was a hacker living in a room in my motherâs house. I had started a company with a friend. A random billionaire says he wants to invest. My first reaction was âyes.â But my partner did the necessary research and became suspicious because of the allegations that came to light.â
According to Taaki, his business partner met Epstein face-to-face during a visit to New York. After the meeting, he decided to terminate the entire process related to the project. Taaki stated, âWhen he came back, he said âabsolutely notâ and ended everything.â
The shared email correspondence shows Epstein describing the Bitcoin idea as âbrilliant,â but also pointing out some serious drawbacks. Taaki, however, argued that the tone of the correspondence suggested Epstein viewed them as âidealistic and radicalâ and maintained a distance from them.
Taaki also claimed that Epstein provided financial support to other figures in the Bitcoin ecosystem instead of them.
*This is not investment advice.