Tether International bought out SoftBank’s equity stake in Twenty One Capital, the NYSE-listed bitcoin treasury firm trading under ticker XXI, the stablecoin issuer announced on May 20, 2026. SoftBank’s representatives stepped down from the XXI board at closing, leaving Tether and Cantor Fitzgerald as the controlling shareholders of a company that now holds 43,514 BTC, worth roughly $3.4 billion at current prices. Bloomberg reported SoftBank’s stake had been valued at about $679 million, though neither company disclosed terms. The deal removes one of XXI’s three founding backers and concentrates ownership ahead of proposed mergers with Strike and a bitcoin mining firm.
A bitcoin treasury company is a publicly listed firm whose primary business is holding bitcoin on its balance sheet and giving public-market investors indirect exposure to the asset through equity ownership.
Key takeaways
- Tether International acquired SoftBank’s full equity stake in Twenty One Capital (NYSE: XXI) on May 20, 2026, with SoftBank’s board representatives exiting at closing.
- XXI holds 43,514 BTC valued near $3.4 billion, making it the second-largest publicly traded bitcoin holder behind Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy).
- Bloomberg reported SoftBank’s roughly 26% stake at about $679 million, though Tether did not confirm financial terms.
- CEO Jack Mallers is positioning XXI for vertical integration through proposed mergers with Strike and Elektron Energy.
Published: May 21, 2026 09:00 UTC
How the deal reshapes XXI ownership
Twenty One Capital launched in December 2025 through a SPAC combination with Cantor Equity Partners and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the XXI ticker on December 9 of that year. At formation, three institutions sat at the cap table: Tether International, Cantor Fitzgerald, and SoftBank. The Japanese investor took a roughly 26% stake and contributed seats on the XXI board.
That structure changed on May 20. Tether bought out SoftBank’s position and absorbed it into its own holdings, ending SoftBank’s involvement after roughly six months of public trading. The board seats vacated under the terms of XXI’s shareholder agreement, which required the SoftBank directors to step down when the stake transferred.
“SoftBank’s involvement gave XXI the kind of institutional depth that few early-stage companies ever have,” Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, said in a statement. Ardoino said Tether’s “conviction in XXI has only deepened” with the purchase.
Why this matters for the bitcoin treasury market
Twenty One Capital sits in a small group of public companies built specifically around bitcoin accumulation. The firm reports performance using a metric it calls bitcoin per share, treating equity holders as fractional participants in the underlying treasury rather than shareholders of a traditional operating business.
The 43,514 BTC on XXI’s books ranks second only to Strategy, the Michael Saylor-led firm that pioneered the corporate bitcoin treasury model. With bitcoin trading near $77,000 on May 20, XXI’s holdings were valued at roughly $3.4 billion against a market capitalization that has ranged between $3 billion and $5 billion since its NYSE debut, according to Bitcoin.com News.
Concentrating ownership in Tether and Cantor Fitzgerald removes a balancing voice from the boardroom. SoftBank, headquartered in Tokyo, had brought decades of technology investment history and a portfolio that spans communications, financial services, and infrastructure. Its exit means XXI’s strategic direction is now set by a stablecoin issuer with roughly $190 billion in USDT circulation and a financial services firm whose CEO, Howard Lutnick, also holds the position of U.S. Commerce Secretary.
What comes next
Mallers, who founded the Lightning Network payments app Strike and helped advise El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin as legal tender, has signaled that XXI’s next phase involves vertical integration rather than passive accumulation. Proposals on the table include a merger with Strike and a separate combination with Elektron Energy, a bitcoin mining operation. If either deal closes, XXI would combine treasury holdings, payments rails, and hashrate under one public ticker.
The company also operates education and media programs aimed at institutional and retail investors, despite running with only around three full-time employees at launch. That lean structure leaves room for the proposed combinations to add operational depth without the typical overhead of a Wall Street acquisition.
Whether SoftBank’s departure signals a broader pullback from corporate bitcoin investments remains unclear. The Japanese group has not commented publicly beyond the board exit, and Tether characterized the move as a consolidation rather than a retreat from the treasury model. For now, the ownership change leaves XXI with a more concentrated cap table and a path toward a vertically integrated bitcoin business that few public companies have attempted.
Frequently asked questions
How much did Tether pay for SoftBank’s stake in Twenty One Capital?
Neither Tether nor SoftBank disclosed financial terms of the May 20, 2026 transaction. Bloomberg reported that SoftBank’s roughly 26% stake in XXI had been valued at approximately $679 million ahead of the sale, but the final purchase price was not made public.
How much bitcoin does Twenty One Capital hold?
Twenty One Capital holds 43,514 BTC as of May 2026, valued at roughly $3.4 billion based on bitcoin’s price near $77,000. That makes XXI the second-largest publicly traded bitcoin holder behind Strategy, the Michael Saylor-led company formerly known as MicroStrategy.
What does Tether plan to do with greater control of XXI?
CEO Paolo Ardoino said Tether’s conviction in XXI has deepened with the purchase. The company is exploring proposed mergers with Jack Mallers’ payments firm Strike and bitcoin mining operation Elektron Energy, a path that would create a vertically integrated public bitcoin business spanning treasury, payments, and mining.
