Who Develops and Funds Bitcoin: A List of Developers and Related Organizations

When discussing Bitcoin development, the first name that comes to mind is usually Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator who introduced Bitcoin in 2008 through the whitepaper titled “A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” However, numerous individuals and organizations have contributed to, and continue to contribute to, the development of Bitcoin Core (formerly known as Bitcoin-qt).

Bitcoin Development and Funding: Current Status

The primary objective of the team responsible for the code and testing is to ensure system stability, which is why changes are generally adopted slowly. The software is developed on GitHub using the Git version control system. Furthermore, the public repository is open for anyone to inspect and suggest edits. Consequently, the list of contributors on the official site includes many individuals who have made minimal contributions.

Innovations are also discussed on GitHub. Additionally, mailing lists and the irc.freenode.net #bitcoin-dev server are used for specific threads.

Significant protocol adjustments are rarely implemented. Instead, those seeking updates are encouraged to create forks (alternate versions). A majority of mining pool owners must accept substantial changes, and all questions are subject to voting. Only key users—maintainers or technical administrators—can approve new edits to the main code.

Notable Bitcoin Developers

Developers working on the project can be broadly categorized into two groups: those with the authority to approve commits and those who merely submit edits. Essentially, individuals whose keys are used to approve commits are considered “first among equals,” as they make crucial decisions. Others have a voice but lack the final authority. A system of trusted keys is required to ensure that a reliable author approves commits, i.e., edits that enter the main code. One of the account or group administrators adds these keys to the repository settings. Bitcoin programmers determine who receives trusted keys during CoreDev meetings, typically selecting from nominees put forward by experienced team members.

The Core Team

There are eight trusted keys in the Bitcoin project repository, held by the following individuals:

1. Wladimir van der Laan (laanwj). He has been working on the project since 2011. Van der Laan maintains an English-language blog. In early 2021, he announced his retirement from active development, moving to a “background role.”
2. Pieter Wuille (sipa). According to his LinkedIn profile, he works at Chaincode Labs. In 2014, Wuille co-founded Blockstream. He is known for his work on Segregated Witness (BIP 141 and 144) and Taproot / Schnorr (BIP 340, 341, and 342).
3. Jonas Schnelli (jonasschnelli). He has participated in the project since 2013. In early 2021, he received a grant from Marathon Patent Group. In October 2021, Jonas announced his departure from the core developer group, although he remains among the technical administrators.
4. Marco Falke (MarcoFalke). He is the most prolific developer, with approximately 2,000 commits. Falke joined the project in 2016 and prefers to focus on testing. He has been nominated by OKCoin and has received grants.
5. Samuel Dobson (meshcollider). He had direct access to the cryptocurrency code and handled protocol security. On December 9, 2021, Dobson officially announced his departure to pursue a career in science.
6. Michael Ford (fanquake). Ford began working on the project in 2012 and became a maintainer in 2019 following a CoreDev meeting. He received a grant incentive from Gemini.
7. Hennadii Stepanov (hebasto). Stepanov is an experienced programmer from Ukraine. He received a grant for Bitcoin support and enhancement in 2020, which was extended for 2021. He works on network processing, interfaces, building, checking, and testing controls.
8. Andrew Chow (achow101). He works as an engineer at Blockstream, with a primary focus on the hardware wallet interface. Chow hosts themed programming broadcasts on Twitch.

Individuals with trusted keys are also referred to as technical administrators. The program development team decides what happens to the access rights of those who leave the group. The Bitcoin repository retains all trusted keys, including those of individuals who have announced their departure.

Other Active Repository Users

As noted, anyone can suggest changes to the Bitcoin Core code. Therefore, the website lists 350 people who have made at least two commits. The list of the most active users can be found in the repository description. Notable among them are:

1. John Newbery (jnewbery). A programmer from the UK who maintains a personal blog and works at Chaincode Labs.
2. Thomas J (practicalswift). A team member since 2017 who remains partially anonymous, with little personal information available on his page.
3. Cory Fields (theuni). Previously worked on the XBMC project.
4. Matt Corallo (TheBlueMatt). A Canadian developer who helped create Bitcoin Core and co-founded Blockstream.
5. Jon Atack (jonatack). A prominent community member. In June 2021, Atack received a grant from Strike. In August 2021, he received funding from Compass Mining. According to his Twitter blog, he appears interested in Buddhism.
6. Gavin Andresen (gavinandresen). A US-based developer who runs a personal blog featuring political opinions and commentary on global events.
7. Luke Dashjr (luke-jr). Based in Florida, US, Dashjr maintains a Patreon channel. He has been working on Bitcoin since 2011.
8. Russell Yanofsky (ryanofsky). A US-based developer who works on several GitHub projects, including ViewVC.
9. Carl Dong (dongcarl). Based in New York City, he works at Chaincode Labs.

Each of these individuals has contributed over 400 commits since the repository’s inception. Many do not have a public social presence, give few interviews, or maintain personal pages; they simply write code, making information about them scarce.

The most active contributors in the repository currently are MarcoFalke, laanwj, sipa, hebasto, fanquake, jnewbery, practicalswift, achow101, jonatack, dongcarl, theStack, glozow, vasild, amitiuttarwar, mzumsande, and kiminuo. All of them have been working on Bitcoin for the past two years.

Well-Known Bitcoin Organizations

The world’s most popular cryptocurrency has naturally attracted the attention of major businesses. However, most firms prefer to invest in crypto assets rather than sponsor cryptocurrency development. Nevertheless, organizations—often non-profits—hire programmers to write Bitcoin code or offer grants.

Businesses with Developers on Staff

A small number of entities, primarily non-profits, employ Bitcoin Core developers. Most of the individuals listed in the previous section work for these organizations. The three most prominent entities are:

1. Chaincode Labs. A non-profit organization based in the United States. Founded by Alex Morcos and Suhas Daftuar, it was created to develop and support Bitcoin. The full team is listed on the company’s website.
2. MIT DCI. A Boston-based non-profit group that operates on donations. It employs Wladimir van der Laan and Cory Fields.
3. Blockstream. A Canadian-based commercial organization funded by venture capital. It employs Pieter Wuille and Andrew Chow and has several people working on related projects and developing products based on the Lightning protocol.

Some companies, such as DG Lab, Purse, and Xapo, have stated that they have several Bitcoin developers on staff, though they do not specify who they are.

Some organizations and companies work on developments closely related to the Bitcoin ecosystem: for example, Square Crypto, Lightning Labs, and Acinq. Their in-house and freelance programmers may work on the Lightning Network, Omni Layer protocols, and other projects based on the Bitcoin blockchain.

Companies Offering Grants

A large number of firms provide grants for Bitcoin development. These can be awarded for a year, six months, or even a month. Most are not permanent and are offered primarily for public relations purposes. However, some companies provide grants on a regular basis, such as:

1. Square Crypto. A non-profit organization based in San Francisco, funded by Square Inc., which offers several incentive programs for Bitcoin developers.
2. BitMEX. A commercial company registered in Seychelles. The company provides one grant and cooperates with a contractor who works on Bitcoin Core.
3. Hardcore Fund. It provides two relatively small incentives for crypto programmers.

The Bitcoin Foundation is widely known; it was founded in 2012 by former Bitcoin team member Gavin Andresen (who had worked on the project since 2010 and left in 2014 after proposing his own crypto product, Bitcoin XT).

A common situation is when a team member working on Bitcoin relies on donations and sponsor support. This is why some maintain Patreon accounts or provide contact details for direct donations.

The development of Bitcoin Core is ongoing. Currently, both experienced developers and sponsors actively support the cryptocurrency system. Various people and companies are engaged in its maintenance, which is beneficial for decentralization, ensuring the project’s stability and independence. Only time will tell what happens next.