Research methods
Wallet attribution: an address is not a person
Transfers can be observable while ownership and intent remain uncertain.
Research articles and reference entries are published in English. Navigation is available in seven languages.
Original MASTR posts on X
People & projects
In this article
An explorer can show a transfer, balance or signer. Naming the human or organisation behind it requires additional evidence. Custodians, shared services, token accounts and automated programmes complicate direct one-address-one-person assumptions.
Separate the claims
Record the observed event first. Then state the evidence supporting an operational relationship, such as repeated signers or an exact route reused across dates. Finally, identify whether beneficial ownership is independently established or only inferred.
A shared funding source can be meaningful, but many customers also withdraw from the same exchange. A busy deposit endpoint may combine funds from unrelated users. A public label may be outdated or based on an unverified submission.
MASTR's TRUMP study identifies strong custody links without assigning every wallet to one owner. The ANSEM workbook preserves a claimed identity as unverified. Those limits make the record more useful to another researcher, who can extend the trail without inheriting an unsupported accusation.
Sources
- MASTR: TRUMP investigation workbook, 22 August 2026
- MASTR: ANSEM liquidity-pool snapshot, 28 June 2026
Research checked 5 September 2026. Historical cases retain the date and legal status of the cited record.