The global cryptocurrency market is experiencing a capital storm jointly initiated by traditional financial giants and leaders in the crypto industry. Recently, multiple sources revealed that SoftBank Group founder Masayoshi Son plans to collaborate with the world's largest stablecoin issuer Tether and U.S. financial services giant Cantor Fitzgerald to establish a joint crypto venture worth up to $3 billion. This move is seen not only as an upgrade to the Bitcoin hoarding strategy but also as a potential turning point for institutional capital to enter the cryptocurrency market on a large scale.
Bitcoin hoarding 2.0 under the SPAC structure
The joint venture operates in the form of a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) called Cantor Equity Partners. This SPAC raised $200 million in initial funding earlier this year and plans to establish a new company, 21 Capital, to manage billions of dollars in Bitcoin assets. According to the agreement, participants will convert their investments into shares of 21 Capital at a valuation of $85,000 per Bitcoin, with each share priced at $10.
Among them, Tether will contribute $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin, while its associated exchange Bitfinex and SoftBank Group will contribute $600 million and $900 million worth of Bitcoin, respectively. If the transaction ultimately materializes, this joint venture could become one of the largest institutional investment platforms for Bitcoin in recent years.
The market generally views this model as an upgraded replica of MicroStrategy's 'Bitcoin financial strategy.' As a NASDAQ-listed company, MicroStrategy has successfully transformed into a core supporter of 'digital gold' by continuously increasing its Bitcoin holdings (currently over 538,000 coins, valued at over $50 billion). The collaboration between Cantor, Tether, and SoftBank seeks to elevate this strategy to a more structured investment tool level, potentially becoming a new channel for institutional investors to enter the Bitcoin market.
Tether's ambition: from stablecoin leader to crypto investment giant
As the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin USDT, Tether has been accelerating its diversification in investments in recent years. In addition to this collaboration with SoftBank and Cantor, Tether has frequently ventured into fields such as agriculture, AI, and brain-computer interfaces over the past year.
Notably, the relationship between Tether and Cantor has long exceeded ordinary commercial cooperation. Cantor not only holds convertible bonds issued by Tether but also assists in managing its over $80 billion U.S. Treasury reserve (these assets provide value anchoring for USDT). In 2023, Cantor further deepened the ties by acquiring 5% of Tether for $600 million.
This deep cooperation has also raised regulatory concerns. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick (former CEO of Cantor) has divested his commercial holdings, but his family remains deeply involved in Cantor's crypto business—his son Brandon Lutnick (current chairman of Cantor) is the main driver of this SPAC. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has publicly questioned whether the close relationship between the Lutnick family and Tether could affect their policy neutrality.
SoftBank's crypto 'revenge': from disastrous defeat to high-stakes gamble
For Masayoshi Son, this collaboration marks SoftBank's 'comeback' in the cryptocurrency field. In 2017, Son personally invested $200 million in Bitcoin but entered at market peaks and sold at lows, ultimately losing over $130 million.
However, in recent years, SoftBank's layout in the digital asset field has significantly accelerated. In early 2024, SoftBank invested $50 million in Bitcoin mining company Cipher Mining and attempted exclusive negotiations for data center development (although it did not ultimately materialize). The partnership with Tether and Cantor is seen as a key step for SoftBank to mitigate risks and return to the Bitcoin market under a structured framework.
Another backdrop to this cooperation is the shift in the U.S. government's attitude toward cryptocurrencies. Since Trump appointed Howard Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce, the market generally expects the U.S. to promote more lenient crypto regulatory policies, helping prices of Bitcoin and crypto assets rise.
In July 2024, Lutnick boldly announced at the Bitcoin 2024 conference that Cantor would launch a $2 billion Bitcoin collateral loan business, claiming that 'Bitcoin will officially enter the global financial system.' This signal was interpreted as a landmark event marking the full embrace of cryptocurrencies by traditional finance.
If this $3 billion joint venture successfully materializes, it will not only strengthen Bitcoin's positioning as an institutional-grade asset but also likely encourage more traditional capital to enter the crypto market in the form of SPACs, ETFs, and other instruments. Following the validation of MicroStrategy's 'hoarding model', the collaboration between Masayoshi Son, Tether, and Cantor may usher in the 2.0 era of Bitcoin institutionalization.
The 'new capital game' in the crypto market
Whether it's MicroStrategy's long-term hoarding or the SPAC structure of the three major giants, it indicates that Bitcoin is transitioning from a retail-driven speculative market to an institutionally driven long-term asset allocation tool. With the potential loosening of the U.S. policy environment, the integration of traditional finance and the crypto world may accelerate.
Masayoshi Son's gamble, Tether's expansion, and Cantor's political and business resources—this $3 billion crypto joint venture experiment may just be the beginning of a global capital reallocation. The next bull market for Bitcoin may be co-authored by these 'whale players.'