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Tether buys SoftBank stake
Tether International acquired SoftBank Group’s stake in Twenty One Capital (XXI), consolidating control over the NYSE-listed bitcoin treasury company and triggering the resignation of SoftBank’s representatives from the XXI Board of Directors at closing.
The deal was announced on Wednesday, and Tether said it purchased SoftBank’s roughly 26% stake for an undisclosed amount while XXI shares edged higher by over 2% on Wednesday.
The ownership shift comes as Tether and SoftBank had launched Twenty One Capital last year, contributing enough bitcoin—42,000, valued at $3.6 billion at the time—to make it one of the largest corporate holders of the digital currency.
In the same coverage, Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s CEO, said, "SoftBank's involvement gave XXI the kind of institutional depth that few early-stage companies ever have," tying the buyout to the company’s early formation.
Other reporting tied the transaction to a broader push beyond treasury exposure, with The Block noting that last month Tether proposed a multi-step plan to merge Twenty One with Strike and bitcoin miner Elektron Energy.
Ardoino frames the move
Tether described the buyout as part of XXI’s continued development, saying in a Wednesday news release, "This transaction reflects the continued development of XXI as the company builds on its foundation and advances its long-term bitcoin strategy," and adding that the increased commitment reflects its conviction in the opportunity.
Paolo Ardoino also emphasized that SoftBank’s experience brought "credibility, perspective, and discipline to XXI during a critical period of formation," while Tether said the board changes followed the company’s shareholder agreement.
PYMNTS reported that Bloomberg News calculated SoftBank owned roughly 26% of Twenty One’s publicly-listed shares, worth around $679 million, and noted that the core business of investing in bitcoin had fallen out of favor since the company’s launch.
That same PYMNTS account said shares in Twenty One were down more than 80% since a record high last year, and it linked the decline to the falling price of bitcoin.
In parallel, Protos reported that SoftBank’s departure forced the immediate resignation of its board designees, leaving XXI temporarily non-compliant with NYSE rules.
Next phase and integration
With SoftBank exiting, multiple outlets framed the change as a shift toward a more consolidated ownership structure under Tether, while Twenty One Capital continued to position itself as a Bitcoin-focused operating company rather than a pure treasury vehicle.
“Tether International has acquired Softbank’s equity stake in Twenty One Capital, the NYSE-listed bitcoin treasury company holding approximately 43,514 BTC, giving the stablecoin issuer greater control over one of the largest publicly traded bitcoin accumulation vehicles in the world”
Bitcoin Magazine said the transaction removed the last major outside ownership bloc from Twenty One’s founding three-party structure and reported that SoftBank’s representatives stepped down at closing per the shareholder agreement.
The Block’s reporting placed the buyout alongside Tether’s earlier merger plans, stating that last month Tether proposed a multi-step plan to merge Twenty One with Strike’s bitcoin financial services platform and bitcoin miner Elektron Energy.
Meanwhile, Stock Titan described the company’s operating vision as combining Bitcoin treasury, financial services, mining, lending, capital markets, and strategic consolidation into one integrated platform, and it said Tether’s deepened commitment aligned shareholders for the next phase.
Across the coverage, the stakes were framed around control of a large publicly traded bitcoin accumulation vehicle, with The Block citing 43,514 BTC for Twenty One Capital and Cointelegraph describing the company as expanding into lending, mining and capital markets services.
