I think he might have orchestrated the events that led to the Rinnegan awakening.
Knowing that Madara is capable of mind controlling a Kage/Jinchuuriki, it's entirely possible that he's controlled certain people that led to the situations that caused the Rinnegan to awaken.
In fact, it's entirely possible that the war that cause the shitty conditions that formed all of Nagato's development could have been the result of Madara mind controlling someone like Hanzo.
Since his original appearance of the Rinnegan happened when his parents were killed, then awakened permanently when they were attacked later, and finally he entered his final state summoning the dragon god statue when Hanzo had Yakuhito killed, then if Madara orchestrated that war, he could consider himself the reason for the Rinnegan existing. He may have even caused that war IN ORDER to give rise to the Rinnegan.
I'm not so sure of that. After all, Madara seemed to know that Nagato was an Uzumaki, when even Nagato himself didn't seem to know that. If the Uzumaki clan was the clan that was capable of awakening the Rinnegan, it wouldn't surprise me if Madara had been tracking Nagato's parents before he was even born.