Jack Mallers’ departure as chief executive of Twenty One Capital and Strike’s withdrawal from a proposed merger have left Tether Investments with a more direct role in shaping the bitcoin treasury company’s next steps, including its still-active discussions with miner Elektron Energy.
Mallers, the founder of payments company Strike, stepped down from the top job at Twenty One this week, according to his public resignation post. He said he would return his full attention to Strike, ending a short tenure at the company created to hold bitcoin on a corporate balance sheet and trade publicly under the ticker XXI.
The exit came alongside Strike’s decision to abandon a proposed transaction that would have combined Strike, Twenty One and Elektron Energy. Tether Investments, the investment arm linked to USDT issuer Tether, had proposed the two-stage arrangement in April, beginning with Strike’s combination with Twenty One before bringing in the bitcoin miner.
Twenty One remains publicly listed and continues discussions related to Elektron Energy, according to the supplied account of the transaction. The collapse of the three-company structure removes a payments business from the plan, leaving Twenty One more clearly focused on bitcoin treasury management and any potential mining expansion.
Klippsten challenges Tether’s influence
Cory Klippsten, chief executive of Swan Bitcoin, used a financial podcast appearance on Thursday to argue that Tether exercises control over Twenty One and views the company as a channel for pursuing political interests in the United States.
Klippsten presented no evidence for the allegation. Tether and Mallers did not respond to requests for comment cited in the source material.
He also described Mallers’ role at Twenty One as predominantly promotional rather than operational, arguing that the Strike founder did not hold the practical authority implied by his chief executive title. Klippsten further suggested that Mallers’ resignation was not entirely voluntary, though he did not provide documentation or direct testimony supporting that characterization.
Mallers’ own statement took a different tone. In announcing his departure, he said he was returning to focus fully on Strike, the company he founded and has led through its efforts to build bitcoin-focused payments products.
The competing accounts leave an unresolved question over how much autonomy Mallers had within Twenty One. They also bring renewed attention to the ownership structure behind a company designed to become one of the largest publicly traded bitcoin holders.
Tether Investments holds the controlling position
Tether Investments is Twenty One’s majority shareholder, according to the supplied report. It reportedly bought SoftBank’s remaining shares in May 2026, consolidating its control over the company.
That ownership position gives Tether Investments substantial influence over board decisions, senior management and the strategic direction of Twenty One. With Mallers gone and the Strike merger proposal withdrawn, the company’s direction will depend more heavily on the shareholder’s approach to its bitcoin treasury, public-market listing and potential relationship with Elektron Energy.
The report identifies Paolo Ardoino’s associate, “Zagury,” as the executive set to take the top job, though it does not provide further details on the appointment process or a formal company statement outlining the new executive’s mandate.
Twenty One reportedly holds 43,514 bitcoin. At that scale, its treasury would place the company among the largest corporate holders of the cryptocurrency and make its shares a vehicle through which traders can gain exposure to bitcoin alongside the company’s management decisions, financing structure and operating strategy.
Bitcoin treasury companies have drawn attention by accumulating large positions in the asset, often funded through equity issuance, convertible debt or other capital-market instruments. Their valuations can move more sharply than bitcoin itself when markets reassess a company’s financing plans, dilution risk or management stability.
Failed combination narrows Twenty One’s strategy
The proposed transaction had aimed to assemble several businesses under one corporate structure: Strike’s payments operations, Twenty One’s bitcoin holdings and Elektron Energy’s mining activities. Such a combination could have linked a large bitcoin treasury to a payments platform and an industrial operation that produces bitcoin through mining.
Strike’s removal from the deal narrows that vision. Twenty One can still pursue a relationship with Elektron Energy, but a mining transaction would bring a very different operating profile from the one envisioned with Strike.
A bitcoin treasury company primarily faces questions around its holdings, capital raising and balance-sheet management. A mining business adds energy costs, equipment spending, production risk and operational execution. Combining the two could diversify revenue sources, but it would also make Twenty One more complex for public-market traders to evaluate.
The source material says shares of Twenty One fell 18% to $4.46 after news of the failed deal emerged, leaving the stock nearly 90% below a reported May 2025 peak of $47. Those figures, if sustained, would reflect a severe loss of market confidence in the company’s earlier consolidation plan and in the premium traders had assigned to its strategy.
A lower share price can also complicate future expansion. Companies that build bitcoin treasuries commonly rely on capital markets to acquire additional bitcoin or finance acquisitions. Issuing stock after a major decline can be more dilutive, while borrowing can become harder if lenders question the durability of the company’s business model.
US expansion places Tether under closer scrutiny
Tether’s involvement in Twenty One comes as the stablecoin issuer seeks a larger presence in the United States. USDT remains the largest stablecoin by market capitalization, though its primary usage has historically been concentrated outside the U.S. market.
The company has expanded through investments and new products as stablecoin regulation, dollar-backed digital assets and bitcoin-related corporate strategies draw greater attention in Washington and on Wall Street. A controlling position in a New York-listed bitcoin treasury company gives Tether a more visible connection to U.S. public markets than its core stablecoin business alone.
Whether Twenty One now proceeds with Elektron Energy, retains a pure treasury strategy or pursues another acquisition will determine how much of its original ambition survives. Mallers’ departure has already shifted control of the narrative away from Strike’s payments brand and toward the company’s largest shareholder, its bitcoin balance sheet and the executive team chosen to manage both.
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