Tether Strikes a Boom and Softbank Backs Out – The Bitcoin Circus Continues!

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Behold! Tether International the stalwart of stablecoins has pulled the wool over Softbank’s eyes and acquired its share in the NYSE‑listed bonanza Twenty‑One Capital. The result? An enlarged hold over an astounding 43,514 BTC galore, creating an even more vigorous digital gold‑ninjas’ playground.

  • Key Takeaways:

  • Tether has taken the reins of Softbank’s stake in Twenty‑One Capital (ticker XXI), tightening its grip over the 43,514 BTC treasure trove.
  • With Tether and Cantor Fitzgerald on board, XXI umbrellas roughly $3.4 B worth of bitcoin as of May 2026.
  • CEO Jack Mallers steers XXI toward a grand hybrid future, with prospects of marrying Strike and the energy‑hungry Elektron mining firm.

Ardoino Declares XXI’s New Chapter a Tether‑pact Masterstroke

On a fateful 20th of May, 2026, the world learned of this grand swallowing of Softbank’s stake. Softbank’s board members then politely took their leave, honouring the shareholder agreement’s exit clause. No sum of coin was whispered.

Twenty‑One Capital now trades under the ticker XXI on the NYSE, having burst onto the scene in December 2025 via a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners. Its headquarters are a modest Austin, Texas office, likely complete with flamingos and a jazz playlist.

The mere fact that XXI shields 43,514 BTC at a price that nudges $3.4 B is enough to make any financier giggle. It sits squarely as the second‑largest bitcoin‑hoarder among publicly listed corporations.

Tether – the granddaddy of stablecoins – already co‑founded XXI with Cantor Fitzgerald. By snatching Softbank’s seat, Tether now commands an even more inherognito ownership concentration.

“Softbank’s involvement gave XXI the kind of institutional depth that few early‑stage companies ever have,” quips Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “Their experience backing some of the most consequential tech companies in the world brought credibility, perspective, and discipline to XXI during its crucial formative phase. They leave behind a company with a stronger foundation, a clearer mandate, and an ambitious path ahead.”

Softbank, the fine Tokyo investment house that’s propped up everything from aeronautics to amuse‑ments, had joined the cohort at XXI’s birth. Their exit merely refines the ownership stew rather than signalling a dramatic withdrawal from the bitcoin‑treasury business.

Jack Mallers, the cheerful maestro behind Strike and a fervent bitcoin crusader (he had quite a part in El Salvador’s fiat‑surrender), built XXI . He’s tasked himself with inspiring academia and media alike, advancing bitcoin literacy from lobbyist to coffee shop crowd. His mission: maximise bitcoin per share – a metric that plays a kind of invisible hand with real owners.

In addition to treasury management, XXI intends to vertically integrate, proposing a merger with Strike and the stone‑cold mining operation Elektron Energy. That would turn a humble fund into a full‑service empire spanning payments to pebble‑mining.

For those intrepid investors keen on mathematics, such a strategy essentially rewards equity holders with a share of the bitcoin bounty without ever handing over a physical silver nugget.

Tether’s moving deeper into its stake stems from the belief that XXI will remain a public company built from the ground up on bitcoin. Since its December 2025 debut, its market cap has oscillated between roughly $3 B and $5 B, a dance akin to bitcoin’s own price and the market’s ever‑whimsical sentiment.

Softbank’s exit closes an early chapter for XXI while Tether charges ahead on a sturdier footing, poised for an impending crescendo in its next development phase.

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2026-05-20 20:04