Twenty One Capital Goes All-In: $458.7M Bitcoin Buy Cements Dominance Before IPO

Wall Street’s latest crypto convert just placed a half-billion-dollar bet on Bitcoin—right before ringing the opening bell. Twenty One Capital’s massive accumulation now makes them the largest corporate BTC holder, eclipsing even MicroStrategy’s notorious hoard.

The move screams institutional FOMO—a hedge fund loading up on digital gold before its own public debut. Either they’ve cracked the next-gen treasury reserve strategy... or this is the ultimate pre-IPO hype play. (Because nothing pumps a prospectus like ’Bitcoin whale’ credentials.)

One thing’s certain: the suits are finally playing by crypto’s rules—buying the rumor, selling the news... and leaving retail holding the bag.

PIPE financing

The purchased Bitcoin was initially acquired by Tether and placed in a designated wallet pending the close of the PIPE (private investment in public equity) financing. Tether will transfer the Bitcoin to Twenty One at the closing of the proposed transactions under terms established in the combination agreement.

The PIPE financing structure includes $385 million in convertible senior secured notes and $200 million in common equity. 

The net proceeds from these offerings are designated primarily for additional bitcoin purchases.

The company also maintains an optional clause to raise up to $100 million more in convertible notes within 30 days of the initial transaction date.

Bitwise head of alpha strategies Jeff Park commented on the timing and scale of the purchase,that Twenty One Capital “basically snapped up half a yard of BTC within two weeks of its announcement.” 

Bitcoin treasury strategy anchors launch

With this acquisition, Twenty One Capital has become the 17th-largest corporate Bitcoin holder globally and ranks fifth among private companies, based on data from.

The company expects to hold more than 42,000 BTC at launch, positioning it behind only Strategy and a few others in total corporate Bitcoin reserves.

Twenty One was formed as part of a business combination with Cantor Equity Partners and is backed by Tether, Bitfinex, and SoftBank Group. The firm is structured to operate as a Bitcoin-native public entity, focused on maximizing Bitcoin ownership per share rather than tracking traditional equity metrics.

The firm’s business model also includes developing Bitcoin-native financial products, capital market tools, and corporate infrastructure aligned with Bitcoin’s monetary properties. 

Twenty One will trade under the “XXI” ticker after the transaction is concluded. Until then, Cantor Equity Partners shares will continue to trade on Nasdaq under “CEP.”