A 16-year-old forum message from Bitcoin’s enigmatic creator has recently resurfaced, serving as a strong defense for the cryptocurrency’s reputation as “digital gold.”
Alex Thorn, who leads research at Galaxy Digital, has crafted an in-depth response to skeptics arguing that Bitcoin has not succeeded as a safeguard against currency inflation.
Thorn emphasizes that the core idea of Bitcoin being “digital gold” stems from a fundamental vision introduced by Satoshi Nakamoto back in 2010, rather than being based on short-term price movements.
The Alleged “Failed” Strategy
Since September 2025, Bitcoin’s price behavior has notably diverged from that of gold. Thorn acknowledges this split has negatively impacted market sentiment.
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“Bitcoin’s inability to perform like gold within the context of ‘the debasement trade’ since September ’25 hurt its narrative among new investors,” Thorn commented on X (formerly Twitter).
Nonetheless, he argues that many are mistakenly conflating temporary market fluctuations (“beta”) with underlying value (“fundamentals”).
Satoshi Nakamoto’s Foundational Thought Experiment
Thorn highlights an influential post made by Satoshi Nakamoto on the Bitcointalk forum dated August 27, 2010. This post explores the intrinsic worth of what was then a fledgling digital currency.
Satoshi invited readers to envision a hypothetical metal—scarce like gold but lacking any practical physical properties: dull grey color, poor electrical conductivity, weak strength and no ornamental use.
Despite these shortcomings, this metal possessed one extraordinary feature: it could be transmitted across communication networks instantly.
Satoshi concluded that this unique ability alone could give such an asset monetary value:
“If it gained any value for whatever reason whatsoever, anyone wanting to move wealth over long distances could buy some units of it and send them digitally for recipients to sell.”
The Unique Advantage Explained
According to Thorn, this thought experiment perfectly encapsulates the purest form of the “digital gold” thesis.
This concept describes an asset mirroring gold’s scarcity and durability while adding a revolutionary benefit—the capacity for instantaneous global transferability via digital means.
“The difference between bitcoin’s fundamental qualities similar to those of gold and how markets currently price bitcoin relative to actual gold—and believing bitcoin will eventually bridge this gap—is essentially what defines the ‘digital gold’ investment thesis,” Thorn elaborated.
For investors able to look beyond recent volatility spikes, Thorn suggests there lies substantial potential opportunity ahead:
“If you trust that markets will ultimately recognize bitcoin’s value akin to how they view physical gold—that represents your alpha advantage.”