Tether Investments has proposed merging Twenty One Capital with Strike and Elektron Energy to create a single public company spanning bitcoin treasury, mining, financial services, and lending.
Posted April 30, 2026 at 6:01 am EST.
Tether Investments announced Wednesday a proposal to merge Twenty One Capital with Strike, the bitcoin financial services company founded by Jack Mallers, and with Elektron Energy, a large-scale bitcoin mining operator. If completed, the transaction would create a single publicly listed platform combining bitcoin treasury holdings, mining operations, financial services, lending, capital markets, and a mergers-and-acquisitions function, all under the XXI ticker. Shares of Twenty One Capital rose more than 8% in after-hours trading following the announcement.
Tether Investments, the independent investment arm of the stablecoin issuer and largest shareholder of XXI, said it intends to vote its shares in favor of both mergers. The company proposed that Raphael Zagury, founder and CEO of Elektron, serve as president of the combined entity. Zagury’s firm manages approximately 50 EH/s across its platform, representing roughly 5% of the current Bitcoin network’s total computing power, with all-in bitcoin production costs below $60,000 per coin. Mallers, who serves as CEO of both XXI and Strike, expressed support for the plan at the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday. Mallers said building a Bitcoin company had always been his founding goal, adding that he wanted to build products rather than replicate a pure accumulation strategy. Strike separately announced a $2.1 billion credit facility, lending proof-of-reserves, and a new bitcoin-backed loan structure developed in collaboration with Tether. Loan rates on Strike range from approximately 10.5% APR for positions under $250,000 to 7.49% APR for positions above $5 million.
This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.
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Twenty One Capital went public in December 2025 through a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners, entering the NYSE with 43,514 BTC on its balance sheet. The company was built around a thesis of capital-efficient bitcoin accumulation, backed by Tether and SoftBank as majority and minority shareholders respectively. The proposed three-way merger would take XXI well beyond that original treasury mandate, adding operational businesses with recurring revenue potential. Tether’s press release described the combined entity’s goal as positioning XXI to become the premier listed Bitcoin company in the world. No terms, timelines, or specific governance structures were disclosed, and the announcement said further details would follow as discussions progress.
The proposal lands as bitcoin treasury companies face pressure to differentiate beyond simply holding bitcoin on a balance sheet. Strategy, led by Michael Saylor, remains the category’s dominant force with over 553,000 BTC. If the merger proceeds, the combined platform would pit XXI directly against Coinbase and other vertically integrated bitcoin businesses across custody, lending, payments, and infrastructure.
