Mohammedia – The US Justice Department on Friday released additional documents related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, prompting renewed discussion online about possible links between Epstein and early cryptocurrency activity.
The newly released records are part of a broader set of materials unsealed through court proceedings connected to Epstein’s criminal cases. The documents include emails and correspondence involving academic, financial, and research institutions that were active during the early years of digital currency development.
Following the release, social media users and some commentators suggested that Epstein may have had ties to Bitcoin and other blockchain projects. Some posts cited Epstein’s appearance in communications linked to academic research into digital currencies and cryptography.
Indeed, one of the newly released Jeffrey Epstein court documents includes a July 31, 2014, email from Austin Hill, then chief executive of Blockstream, to Jeffrey Epstein and Joichi Ito stating that investor backing of both Ripple and Stellar was “bad for the ecosystem we are building,” with Reid Hoffman copied
Ripple has not issued an official public statement addressing the claims. However, David Schwartz, Ripple’s former chief technology officer, said in posts on the social media platform X that he was not aware of any connections between Epstein and Ripple, XRP, or Stellar.
I don’t know of any connections between Jeffrey Epstein and Ripple, XRP, or Stellar. I know of any evidence anyone at Ripple or Stellar ever met with Epstein or anyone closely connected to him. There are some indirect ties between Epstein and people connected to Bitcoin in…
— David ‘JoelKatz’ Schwartz (@JoelKatz) January 31, 2026
“I don’t know of any connections between Jeffrey Epstein and Ripple, XRP, or Stellar,” Schwartz wrote in a post on January 31. He added that he was not aware of any evidence that anyone at Ripple or Stellar had met Epstein or anyone closely connected to him.
According to the released documents, Epstein appears in some correspondence as a contact or copied recipient in discussions involving funding or academic programs. The records do not identify him as a software developer, project leader, or decision-maker in any cryptocurrency network.
In separate posts, Schwartz commented on a July 31, 2014, email titled “Stellar isn’t so Stellar,” sent by Austin Hill, then chief executive officer of Blockstream, to Joichi Ito and Epstein, with Reid Hoffman copied. The email discussed objections to investors backing both Ripple and Jed McCaleb’s newly launched Stellar network, citing ideological and strategic concerns.
I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this is just the tip of a giant iceberg.https://t.co/ArqNp0ZhK5 pic.twitter.com/ibRXHc6uNh
— David ‘JoelKatz’ Schwartz (@JoelKatz) January 31, 2026
Schwartz said the email reflected investor-related tensions common in the early cryptocurrency sector and did not indicate operational influence by Epstein. He said similar views were likely expressed to multiple recipients during that period.
Bitcoin, the first and largest cryptocurrency, was introduced in 2009 by an unknown creator using the name Satoshi Nakamoto. The identity of Nakamoto has never been confirmed, and the newly released Epstein documents do not identify Epstein as having control over Bitcoin’s code, governance, or design.
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