This viral screenshot that purports to show Jeffrey Epstein emailing Ghislaine Maxwell about "Project Bitcoin" and calling it "our little digital gold mine" is false. A review of the public "Epstein Files" finds no email or document containing the quoted phrase or the address shown. The image contains duplicated headers and formatting errors consistent with manipulation, although some released files do reference "Satoshi Nakamoto."
Fact Check: No Jeffrey Epstein Email About 'Bitcoin' Or 'Our Little Digital Gold Mine' In Released Epstein Files
Lead Stories says: Not In Files
A viral screenshot claiming Jeffrey Epstein emailed Ghislaine Maxwell about a project called "Bitcoin" and referring to it as "our little digital gold mine" is false. A review of the documents released as the public "Epstein Files" finds no email matching the quoted phrase or the address shown in the screenshot, though some genuine files do mention the name "Satoshi Nakamoto."
What The Viral Image Claims
Date: October 31, 2008
Subject: RE: Project "Bitcoin" Funding & Whitepaper
From: J. Epstein <jepstein@financial.net>
To: G. Maxwell <gmaxwell@terramar.org>Hi Bine, Ghislaine, the "Satoshi" pseudonym is working perfectly.
Our little digital gold mine is ready for the world.
Funding secured.
-Jeffrey
Why The Screenshot Is Not Authentic
Header anomalies: The image contains duplicated header lines (for example, two "To:" lines and a repeated subject), which is inconsistent with genuine archived email exports.
Formatting errors: The layout and metadata in the screenshot do not match the structure used in public records from the released files.
Image source: post by @TedPillows on x.comNo supporting records: Searches of the public Epstein Files hosted by the U.S. Department of Justice do not return any email or document containing the phrase "little digital gold mine" or the email address "jepstein@financial.net."
What The Released Files Do Show
Independent searches of the released documents do return a small number of items that reference the name "Satoshi" or "Satoshi Nakamoto," the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. Those legitimate references are not the same as the specific phrasing and email metadata shown in the viral image.
How We Checked
Reviewed the publicly available "Epstein Files" hosted via the U.S. Department of Justice and searched for the quoted phrase and the email address displayed in the screenshot.
Image source: screenshot of results at https://www.justice.gov/epstein/searchExamined the screenshot for technical and formatting inconsistencies that are common in doctored images.
Noted the original viral post appeared on X on February 1, 2026, which is the earliest known circulation of the image.
Bottom Line
The specific email shown in the viral screenshot is not present in the released Epstein Files, and multiple anomalies in the image's headers and formatting are consistent with manipulation. While a few genuine documents in the public release mention "Satoshi Nakamoto," there is no evidence in the released records for the claimed message or the email address shown in the screenshot.
Verification tip: When you encounter viral screenshots of alleged emails, check the original source, compare headers and metadata against official archives, and search primary document repositories before accepting the claim.
Help us improve.
