Strike CEO to Lead New Tether, SoftBank-Backed Bitcoin-Centric Venture

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Sujha Sundararajan

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Sujha Sundararajan

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April 23, 2025

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Crypto payments firm Strike founder, Jack Mallers, has joined as the CEO of a newly formed Bitcoin-centric company Twenty One.

Backed by Tether and SoftBank Group, the company is expected to hold over 42,000 Bitcoin at launch, making it the third-largest BTC treasury, after Strategy and Mara Holdings.

Jack Mallers to Bring Bitcoin Expertise

According to an official release, Mallers would bring his expertise in digital global payments to Twenty One, while intending to continue his role at Strike.

Last year, Mallers predicted that Bitcoin would skyrocket 870%, reaching $1 million if the U.S. government acquires four million BTC. He highlighted Bitcoin’s unique scarcity and resistance to inflation as key factors, driving the growth.

Mallers founded Strike in 2020, the payments app built on the Bitcoin Lightning Network, pioneering BTC as a global payment tool.

Notably, Mallers “Orange Pilled” El Salvador President Nayib Bukele in 2021. The same year, President Bukele announced that the country would become the first to make Bitcoin an official currency.

“With Jack at the helm, we are proud to support this effort to further Bitcoin’s adoption and reinforce its role as the ultimate store of value,” said Paolo Ardoino, Tether CEO.

Ardoino highlighted that Twenty One would take a Bitcoin-first approach, prioritizing accumulation over speculation and building long-term value.

Tether to Contribute $1.5B Worth Bitcoin to Twenty One

As reported by Cryptonews, the multibillion-dollar Bitcoin investment vehicle Twenty One Capital, would see a contribution of $1.5 billion in Bitcoin from Tether. Meanwhile, SoftBank would add $900 million and Bitfinex would provide $600 million to the venture, an FT report noted.

“Twenty One is structured to be a day one Bitcoin-native company that will strategically allocate capital to increase Bitcoin per share,” the release read.

Besides, the new venture is also planning to support “financial products built with and on Bitcoin,” which includes native lending models and capital market instruments.

“We believe that Bitcoin is the answer, and Twenty One is how we bring that answer to public markets,” Mallers noted. “We’re not here to beat the market, we’re here to build a new one. A public stock, built by Bitcoiners, for Bitcoiners.”