Twenty One Capital Adds 4,812 Bitcoin to Its Treasury Ahead of SPAC Listing

Major cryptocurrency payments firm Tether has bought 4,812 Bitcoin for its new investment vehicle Twenty One Capital.

The latest purchase by Tether was disclosed by Cantor Equity Partners in a SEC filing on May 13.

Cantor's SPAC is merging with Jack Mallers' startup to create a publicly listed company focused on Bitcoin.

According to the filing, Teher bought the Bitcoin on May 9 at an average price of $95,319.83 per token, for a total value of around $458.7 million.

The assets were then transferred to an escrow wallet as part of the arrangement for the merger.

At the time of the purchase, the latest addition brings Twenty One Capital's total Bitcoin holdings to 36,312 BTC.

This positions the company as the third-largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, after Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) with 568,840 BTC and MARA Holdings with 48,237 BTC.

Teher is one of the main backers of Twenty One Capital, alongside crypto exchange Bitfinex and Japanese tech giant SoftBank.

The trio co-founded the company in April and are tying together their investments to form the new public firm.

Their goal is to create a company that is completely focused on long-term BTC accumulation and providing institutional access to the cryptocurrency.

As part of the merger agreement, which was signed in April, Teher has agreed to buy Bitcoin equal to the expected net proceeds from a PIPE (Private Investment in Public Equity) investment.

These assets will then be transferred to a designated wallet and sold to Twenty One Capital at the closing of the merger.

Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Teher, said that the stablecoin issuer is making a long-term commitment to the venture, which he sees as a key institution in the future of crypto.

"Twenty One will take a Bitcoin-first approach that aligns with our vision—prioritizing accumulation over speculation," Ardoino said last month.

The merger is being completed with Cantor Equity Partners, a Cayman Islands-based SPAC that is affiliated with U.S. firm Cantor Fitzgerald.

Once the merger is complete, Twenty One Capital will be listed on public markets under the ticker XXI. Currently, Cantor Equity trades under the ticker CEP.

Cantor Fitzgerald is providing advisory services and securing additional capital to support the company's Bitcoin strategy. The firm has raised $585 million to fund future Bitcoin purchases.

Earlier filings showed the company plans to launch with at least 42,000 Bitcoin in assets, including 23,950 BTC from Teher, 10,500 BTC from SoftBank, and around 7,000 BTC from Bitfinex, all of which will be converted into shares priced at $10 each.

Twenty One Capital has positioned itself as a future competitor to Strategy, which has become known for its cryptocurrency investment strategy and the company's high share price gains.

The company says its goal is to become the “superior vehicle” for capital-efficient exposure to Bitcoin.

Rather than focusing on traditional financial metrics, the company will prioritize “Bitcoin per share” as its key success indicator. This approach closely follows that of Strategy, which has become known for its aggressive Bitcoin acquisition strategy.

Strike founder Jack Mallers was appointed CEO of Twenty One Capital in April. Known for his vocal support of Bitcoin and work on Lightning-based payments, Mallers described the new company as a stock “built by Bitcoiners, for Bitcoiners.”

Mallers has also outlined plans for Twenty One to launch Bitcoin-native financial products, including lending tools and capital market offerings.

The news of Teher's Bitcoin purchase has led to dramatic price changes for shares of Cantor Equity Partners.

On May 2, the share price increased from $10.65 to $59.73, before falling back to $29.84. After the recent filing, the stock gained another 5.2% in after-hours trading.

The timing of the purchase also coincides with Bitcoin trading around $103,540, placing the cryptocurrency within range of its previous all-time high of around $109,000.