Tether-controlled Twenty One Capital (XXI) named Raphael Zagury as its new CEO, replacing Jack Mallers, and dropped Strike from a proposed three-way merger, the companies announced.
Mallers returns to Strike
Mallers stepped down effective July 20 to focus on Strike, the bitcoin payments firm he founded.
Strike will remain independent and is no longer being considered for a business combination with Twenty One, according to a press release.
Tether, which controls Twenty One as its majority shareholder, confirmed the leadership and structural changes in a separate announcement.
The abandoned merger
Back in April, Tether proposed combining Twenty One Capital, Strike, and Elektron Energy into a single listed company.
The plan aimed to place bitcoin treasury operations, financial services, and mining under one roof.
That three-way structure has now been scrapped, with Strike stepping away entirely.
A revised strategy
Twenty One is now weighing a potential two-way combination with Elektron Energy as it reshapes its direction.
The revised strategy will center on acquiring operating businesses, expanding capital markets capabilities, and developing bitcoin-backed lending products.
XXI shares were little changed in pre-market trading following the announcement.
CoinDesk said it reached out to all three companies but had not received a response at the time of writing.
