The identity of an anonymous Palo Alto millionaire, who for weeks has been planting white envelopes stashed with hundreds of dollars in cash throughout Northern and Southern California, is no longer a secret.
The Twitter moniker and name behind the generous Samaritan’s project, @HiddenCash, is actually real estate mogul Jason Buzi, according to CBS San Francisco. Buzi’s identity was discovered by the TV show Inside Edition, which used a voice analyst to conduct the matchup.
Buzi confirmed the discovery on Friday to The Bold Italic.Buzi’s “Hidden Cash” project created such a buzz that it attracted hundreds of thousands of his Twitter followers to search for the parcels containing little treasures, CBS notes.
While Buzi says witnessing the struggles of his friends and employees led him to the decision to give back to the community that has helped make him so wealthy via #HiddenCash, he is still facing criticism for the way in which he acquired his wealth.
CBS writes that an article published in 2012 talks about Buzi’s business as “taking advantage of struggling homeowners during the Great Recession by buying up their homes at below market value and quickly flipping them for a profit.” They go on to write that Buzi has denied any wrongdoing.
On Saturday, @HiddenCash tweeted:
It seems like some, especially the media, can’t believe HC is not a publicity stunt or business venture. Cynics. HC is a fun way to give.
— Hidden Cash (@HiddenCash) June 7, 2014
San Francisco has the greatest gap in wealth, with a huge stratification between the “haves” and the “have-nots.” Buzi’s project definitely made a few lucky recipients happy. But his quest to give back to society is not over:
Thank you to our amazing fans for your support! Hiddencash will continue and grow even bigger! Love you.
— Hidden Cash (@HiddenCash) June 6, 2014
And @HiddenCash has upgraded their treasure-hunting quest to move beyond the original white envelopes, as they’re now using other ways to house the hidden loot:
It’s not too late. People are still finding them. They’re not buried deep. pic.twitter.com/z0Sn3Dxr1h
— Hidden Cash (@HiddenCash) May 31, 2014
And:
Hiddencash playing tourist. There are 9 bubbles by the K9s (near here!). pic.twitter.com/y4D0fmbalj
— Hidden Cash (@HiddenCash) June 1, 2014
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