Tether is pushing for a merger that would combine Twenty One Capital, the Bitcoin-focused investment firm it supports with SoftBank and Cantor Fitzgerald, with crypto payments platform Strike and Bitcoin mining company Elektron Energy.
The proposal, first reported by Bloomberg, comes as investor interest shifts away from firms that only hold large Bitcoin reserves. Tether aims to reposition Twenty One Capital by integrating operational capabilities and expanding beyond passive Bitcoin holding.
Tether is proposing a 3-way merger to combine bitcoin treasury, mining, and financial services under one company.
The move would consolidate Twenty One Capital’s operations into a single bitcoin-focused entity. pic.twitter.com/2s7UkJix3w
— Token Metrics (@tokenmetricsinc) April 30, 2026
XXI shares jumped 8% in after-hours trading on April 29, 2026, reflecting investor optimism about the combined Bitcoin business. The potential benefits of uniting treasury holdings, mining, and financial services, although the early social media response has been muted.
Shifting from passive holding to operational utility
The merger proposal signals a major shift for Twenty One Capital, which entered the market in December through a SPAC and quickly became the third-largest corporate Bitcoin holder with over 40,000 BTC. As investors increasingly favour companies with active business models, Tether’s plan would combine Strike’s payments technology and Elektron Energy’s mining operations to create a vertically integrated Bitcoin entity.
Analysts question whether pure Bitcoin treasury firms can remain viable without expanding into services such as high-performance computing or remittances. Tether’s strategy signals a push to deploy its liquidity into building operational infrastructure instead of maintaining passive reserves.
Tether expands ecosystem and funding for stablecoin infrastructure
Tether launched a self-custodial tether.wallet for USDT, Bitcoin, and gold across multiple chains, enhancing direct access for 570M users. It also backed a $134M raise for SDEV with Framework Ventures to mainstream stablecoin infrastructure. While the proposed merger has triggered debate over how to value Bitcoin-linked equities.
Some market participants warn that combining a treasury-focused firm with an operational miner like Elektron Energy could increase execution risk. Others see potential in uniting Strike’s Lightning Network payments with direct mining, arguing it could establish a closed-loop system for Bitcoin transactions.
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