A Bitcoin advocacy organization named Nakamoto Project has been running print advertisements in The Wall Street Journal for the past three weeks. These advertisements have since spread widely on social media, but what has drawn even more attention is how this small, non-profit organization managed to afford a nationwide newspaper advertising campaign.
Public price of approximately $2.17 million
According to Fortune's calculation based on The Wall Street Journal's 2026 advertising rates, the standard public price for this round of advertising is approximately $2.17 million. Of this, each full-color ad in a whole page costs about $181,000, and each quarter-page full-color ad costs about $45,200.
As for the accompanying sponsored articles, the price list does not specify the prices, so the actual total cost may be higher or it could vary due to discounts. This has also led to questions from the outside world about who is actually bearing this promotional budget.
The institution states that its goal is to raise awareness among the public.
The person in charge of Nakamoto Project told Fortune that the goal of this campaign is to correct public misconceptions about Bitcoin and to try to establish communication with those who have only heard of Bitcoin but lack further understanding of it.
The report mentions that Bitcoin itself does not have a corporate entity, nor is there a unified marketing budget. Therefore, those who carry out public communications around Bitcoin are usually advocates with relevant interests, research institutions, or industry groups.
Relatively small public financial scale
Nakamoto Project was established in 2023 and registered as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization in Sheridan of Wyoming. Public databases indicate that the organization is classified as an education-related entity.
According to the public disclosure documents reviewed by Fortune, the organization received a total of $275,000 in donations during its first operating year. The public version lists only one donor, which suggests that its early funding may have come from a single source. However, federal regulations in the United States allow non-profit organizations to conceal the identities of donors in public copies.
There is a clear contrast between historical expenditures and investments.
Public information shows that Nakamoto Project spent over $204,000 in 2023 and 2024 combined. Of this amount, approximately $180,500 was used for executive salaries and contractual services, accounting for more than 88%; advertising and promotion expenses amounted to about $12,300, which is about 6%.
From this historical level of expenditure, it is evident that the scale of advertising placements by The Wall Street Journal has been significantly larger recently, which has also drawn attention to the source of additional funds. The report also mentions that the organization's 2025 declaration documents have not yet been made public, and it is currently not possible to see the latest donation information from the available materials.
Additional information:The tax filing documents for this organization were prepared by Satoshi Pacioli Accounting Services, which is an accounting service firm targeting the Bitcoin industry. Its name incorporates elements from both Satoshi Nakamoto and Luca Pacioli.
