Michael Saylor had his fans and his doubters when he started piling Bitcoin onto his company’s balance sheet. It was a bold move, maybe a bit wild to some folks watching from the sidelines. But now, a new player just showed up, and they’ve already got nearly $4 billion worth of Bitcoin tucked away. That’s a lot of digital cash.
- A new company called Twenty One, backed by SoftBank and Tether, has emerged with a significant Bitcoin holding, potentially rivaling Michael Saylor’s strategy.
- Analysts suggest this new entrant could validate Bitcoin as a corporate asset, attracting institutional investors and increasing overall demand.
- Despite potential competition, some believe this development could benefit Saylor’s company by legitimizing its Bitcoin-focused approach and driving up the value of its holdings.
This new group, called Twenty One, was put together by some big names: SoftBank, Tether, and Cantor Fitzgerald. They said right out loud that their main job would be holding Bitcoin. This made a lot of people think, “Okay, this looks like a serious competitor to Saylor’s company.”
Think about it. Twenty One could launch holding over 42,000 Bitcoin right away. At today’s prices, that’s close to $4 billion. That would make them the third-biggest public company holding Bitcoin from day one. In the regular business world, a rival this big showing up might make things tough for the first guy, maybe hurt his ability to raise money.
But some smart folks on Wall Street see it differently. Analysts Lance Vitanza and Jonnathan Navarrete over at TD Cowen looked at this and said, “Nope, this isn’t bad news for Saylor.” They called it the “most-meaningful validation” of his whole Bitcoin strategy yet. They feel even better about Saylor’s stock now.
These analysts think this new rival could actually help convince the big money people, the institutional investors (folks who manage huge amounts of money), who were maybe a bit skeptical about Saylor’s plan. Seeing other big names jump in might make them think, “Okay, maybe this Bitcoin thing isn’t so crazy after all.”
More big players buying Bitcoin means more demand for it. It’s like when everyone suddenly wants the same toy; the price tends to go up. The analysts figure this increased demand from a high-profile new entrant could easily outweigh any pressure on Saylor’s company when they try to raise money. It could just bring more money into the whole idea of companies holding Bitcoin.
“Certainly this is what Michael Saylor professes to believe,” the analysts wrote. Saylor has been talking for a long time about how more companies should follow his lead and put Bitcoin on their books. It seems like he might be getting his wish, just maybe not in the way some expected.
TD Cowen kept their price target for Saylor’s company stock at $550. They also made a projection: they think the company could hold a massive 757,000 Bitcoin by the end of 2027. That’s about 3.6% of all the Bitcoin that will ever exist. Imagine holding that much of anything.
If Bitcoin hits an average price of $170,000 by then, TD Cowen estimates that huge stash could be worth a staggering $129 billion. That’s not pocket change by any measure. It makes the initial $4 billion Twenty One is starting with look, well, smaller, though still quite large.
You can already see the market reacting to this idea that competition might actually be a good thing here. The shares of Cantor Equity Partners, which is the company Twenty One is using to go public (it’s a SPAC vehicle, basically a shell company set up to merge with another company), have shot up. They climbed as much as 130% since the news came out.
Meanwhile, Saylor’s company stock held its ground. It didn’t tank because a big rival showed up. It stayed strong. This seems to back up what the analysts are saying: maybe this new player isn’t a threat, but more like a stamp of approval on the whole strategy.
It’s a bit like two shops opening next to each other selling the same unique thing. Sometimes, instead of stealing each other’s customers, they just make the whole street famous for that one thing, bringing more people in overall. Maybe that’s what’s happening here with Bitcoin and company balance sheets.
This move by SoftBank, Tether, and Cantor Fitzgerald isn’t just another company buying Bitcoin. It’s a statement. It says that holding Bitcoin as a main business strategy is becoming more mainstream. It’s getting harder for the big money folks to ignore.
The analysts at TD Cowen seem pretty convinced. They aren’t just saying it’s okay; they’re saying it makes them more bullish. More confident that Saylor’s bet will pay off. And they put a number on it: $550 for the stock and hundreds of thousands of Bitcoin held in a few years.
It’s a fascinating turn of events. A potential rival shows up, and instead of a fight, some see it as validation. It’s a reminder that the rules of the game in the crypto space can sometimes feel a bit different than what you’d expect from traditional finance. It keeps things interesting, that’s for sure.
And for those who watched Saylor buy Bitcoin through the ups and downs, this new development might feel like a moment where the tide is turning. Where a strategy that seemed fringe is starting to look, well, validated by some very powerful friends.
The market is watching. The analysts are making their calls. And another massive chunk of Bitcoin is potentially heading into a public company’s hands. It adds another layer to the ongoing story of how Bitcoin is finding its place in the world of big business.
