A stunned crowd watched the recovery from the lake of the statue of Satoshi Nakamoto, symbol of Bitcoin and the crypto revolution in Switzerland, after it had disappeared without a trace from Parco Ciani di Lugano under mysterious circumstances.
JUST IN: The Satoshi statue in Lugano,🇨🇭 Switzerland appears to have been stolen 😮
Via @Grittoshi pic.twitter.com/vyQpn7JkoX
— Bitcoin News (@BitcoinNewsCom) August 2, 2025
What happened to the statue of Satoshi Nakamoto in Lugano?
The sculpture, created by the artist Valentina Picozzi together with the collective Satoshigallery, had been placed at the Foce del Cassarate in October 2024, quickly becoming one of the most iconic installations dedicated to Bitcoin in Europe. A few days ago, the statue was removed from the pedestal and thrown into the lake by a group of youths, as determined by surveillance footage analyzed by the Lugano police.
It was therefore not an organized theft, as initially hypothesized, but an act of vandalism documented in the images recorded shortly after 2 a.m. on Saturday. The police commander, Roberto Torrente, confirmed to RSI that the responsible parties were a group of young people, whose identities are being verified.
Dove è Satoshi?
Stiamo offrendo 0.1 btc a chiunque ci aiuterà a recuperare la Statua di Satoshi Nakamoto che è stata rubata ieri a Lugano.
Puoi rubare il nostro simbolo ma non potrai mai rubare le nostre anime.
Grazie a tutti per i bei messaggi.
Siamo tutti in questo… https://t.co/cAGCqg4CuP pic.twitter.com/iGrBOdVYhe
— Satoshigallery (@satoshigallery) 3 agosto 2025
How did the recovery of the statue from the lake occur?
The recovery of the statue of Satoshi Nakamoto took place on the morning of Sunday, August 3, 2025, thanks to the divers from the Swiss Rescue Society Lugano section. The work, found broken due to the impact with the water, finally became visible again after more than twenty-four hours of absence, putting an end to the initial unfounded theories about the theft.
In its place, where the pedestal was located in Parco Ciani, some flowers have been left by citizens and members of the crypto community, as a testament to how much the statue had already acquired a strong symbolic value among enthusiasts and residents.
Why is the statue dedicated to Bitcoin so important?
The work celebrated the founder of Bitcoin, identified with the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, and represented the link between Lugano and the crypto world. The Swiss city, a well-known European hub for DeFi and blockchain technologies, has invested heavily in promoting an environment conducive to financial innovation, so much so that the installation of the statue in October 2024 was hailed as a crucial step for the international visibility of this ecosystem.
According to many observers, this sculpture had become in a few weeks a sort of “monument to anonymity,” in line with the open and decentralized philosophy on which Bitcoin is based. It is therefore not surprising the indignant reaction of the community after the vandalism suffered by the monument.
What are the reactions of the crypto community and institutions?
The immediate response from the artist Valentina Picozzi and the collective Satoshigallery: through a press release shared on social channels, they announced that the statue “will be recreated and provided at their own expense” and that the city will be involved again, this time to ensure an adequate and safe placement capable of protecting it.
Not only that: a group of residents and activists has already launched a public petition to urge the Municipality of Lugano to offer logistical support in order to restore and enhance the work. The goal is to ensure that similar episodes do not recur and that the statue dedicated to Satoshi Nakamoto can long serve as a point of reference for Bitcoin enthusiasts and visitors.
What are the petition promoters asking for?
The promoters, in a few hours, collected dozens of signatures and requested “visibility, enhancement, and protection” for the new sculpture, emphasizing the cultural, educational, and tourist role that a monument like this can play for a city that wants to present itself as the European capital of decentralized finance.
The damage suffered by the statue, therefore, becomes an opportunity to relaunch the debate on the safety of public works, the centrality of innovation, and the identity of the territory. A strong signal for a Lugano increasingly committed to confirming its position in the global crypto landscape.
What happens now: timing, prospects, and impact on the community
The episode of vandalism did not stop the community; on the contrary: Bitcoin and the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto are more than ever at the center of attention in Lugano. The new version of the statue, already announced by the artist, will soon be repositioned with the involvement of local institutions. The hope, expressed by Picozzi and Satoshigallery, is that this time it can be appreciated and better protected.
In the meantime, the compact response of the crypto and citizen community represents a turning point: the petition puts pressure on the authorities so that this matter does not go unnoticed and turns into a positive example of resilience and participation.
The focus is now on the date when the statue will be repositioned: an announced event that promises to be rich in significance for those following the Bitcoin revolution and the history of decentralization in Europe.
