Jack Mallers exits Twenty One; Strike tie-up abandoned

Jack Mallers will step down as chief executive of Twenty One Capital to concentrate on his payments company, Strike. Tether, Twenty One’s controlling shareholder, named Raphael Zagury as Mallers’ successor and said the companies will manage an orderly handover. Tether confirmed the previously discussed combination between Twenty One and Strike is no longer being pursued.

Mallers wrote that the role clarified what he wants to build and added, “My life’s work remains Bitcoin. My Bitcoin company is Strike. The work continues.” The company’s April 29 operating plan, which centered on possible acquisitions of Strike and Elektron, was not completed.

Twenty One’s March-quarter filing, lodged in May, reported there were no binding commitments or agreements for either acquisition and that the board had not approved a transaction. Tether’s announcement stated Strike is best positioned as an independent business.

Raphael Zagury, a Twenty One board member with experience in capital markets and Bitcoin infrastructure, will take on the CEO role with a mandate to develop cash-generating operations around the company’s Bitcoin holdings. Zagury has emphasized measuring the company by operating cash flow and disciplined capital allocation. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino noted Zagury’s background in building businesses that produce cash flow.

The company reported a March 31 snapshot showing 43,514 BTC with a fair value of about $2.95 billion and roughly $114.1 million in cash. The same filing recorded a rounded $847.8 million fair-value loss on the Bitcoin position for the quarter and indicated about 16,116 BTC had been pledged as collateral for convertible notes. The filing described those figures as a dated quarter-end snapshot rather than the current balance.

Twenty One has outlined plans to increase Bitcoin per share while building financial services, lending, capital markets products and other operations that generate cash from its treasury. With Strike remaining independent, Twenty One will pursue that operating model without the payments business that had been central to its earlier expansion plan.

Market conditions have included weaker Bitcoin prices and tighter financing, which have required firms holding large Bitcoin reserves to weigh debt payments, collateral requirements and other obligations against further accumulation. In June, some treasury-linked preferred shares traded below their stated value even as dividends continued. New corporate Bitcoin credit initiatives are also advancing, creating a variety of financing structures for these treasuries.

The company did not cite market conditions as the reason for Mallers’ departure. Zagury’s stated priorities are generating durable operating cash flow and applying disciplined capital allocation to support listed-company operations and financing obligations while managing the firm’s large Bitcoin balance sheet.