Tucker Carlson Refuses to Buy Bitcoin, Says It’s a CIA Operation

Carlson claims Bitcoin allows “totalitarian management,” warning digital currencies may implement obedience.

Tucker Carlson has claimed that the Central Intelligence Company (CIA) created Bitcoin (BTC), saying the thriller round its founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, makes him mistrust the cryptocurrency.

Talking at a Turning Level USA occasion on October 22, the Conservative commentator mentioned he would by no means spend money on Bitcoin as a result of he believes it was designed by monetary elites to regulate society.

Bitcoin’s “CIA Origins” Concept Will get New Airtime

In his speech, Carlson admitted that whereas he beloved the concept of monetary autonomy that Bitcoin represented, the truth was starkly completely different, with crypto changing into a “rip-off” run by a “coalition of beneficiaries,” to additional their management of American society.

“I’m actually afraid of a digital foreign money as a result of that’s totalitarian management,” he claimed. “Should you can punish folks, should you can zero out their checking account and hold them from consuming, you should have complete obedience.”

The previous Fox Information host added that he was a gold purchaser and doesn’t spend money on issues he doesn’t perceive. He questioned how a trillion-dollar asset may have an nameless creator and why Satoshi’s estimated a million BTC have by no means been moved.

“No person can clarify to me who Satoshi was, the creator of Bitcoin, this mysterious man who apparently died,” mentioned Carlson. “I grew up in DC, primarily in a authorities household, so, CIA,” he added.

The speculation {that a} authorities company created Bitcoin has been round for some time, however Carlson’s remarks have given it renewed consideration. That concept gained some traction in 2020 when The Washington Publish revealed that the CIA had secretly owned Swiss encryption agency Crypto AG for many years, utilizing it to spy on greater than 120 international locations by promoting them rigged gadgets.

Inside hours of Carlson’s speech airing, Bitcoin supporters challenged his assertions on X. Strike CEO Jack Mallers wrote:

“Should you suppose realizing who created Bitcoin issues, you don’t perceive it. Bitcoin is open supply. No person has particular rights, and everybody can confirm that.”

Broadcaster Max Keiser additionally dismissed the CIA declare, saying it contradicts the well-documented historical past of Bitcoin’s improvement. Others mocked the media persona’s mistrust, with Marty Bent, host of the Tales from the Crypt podcast, remarking:

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“Even when the CIA did create Bitcoin (it didn’t), anybody can audit the code to see what it does. That’s all that issues.”

Nonetheless, some agreed with Carlson’s broader considerations about authorities energy. One among them, Mert Mumtaz, CEO of Helius Labs, whereas laughing off the CIA idea, argued that Carlson’s concern of monetary surveillance is legitimate. He warned that crypto can be utilized for dangerous as an alternative of excellent if constructed poorly.

The Enduring Thriller of Satoshi Nakamoto

The seek for Satoshi has change into a form of world puzzle after the individual, or folks, behind the identify fully vanished from public view in 2011.

Final 12 months, an HBO documentary suggested that late cryptographer Len Sassaman might be Satoshi. Simply days earlier than that, the movie’s director pointed to Peter Todd as the person behind the pseudonym, however the former Bitcoin developer firmly denied the declare. In the identical 12 months, a UK choose formally ruled that laptop scientist Craig Wright, who had claimed to be Satoshi, was not the BTC creator.

Regardless of the setbacks, folks haven’t given up on fixing the thriller. Some, like crypto lawyer James Murphy, have taken the authorized route, suing the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety in April 2025 for data that may reveal Satoshi’s identification.