$BTC Today in crypto, Japanese firm Metaplanet said it plans to eventually use its Bitcoin reserves to acquire cash-generating businesses, Coinbase’s lobby arm has urged lawmakers to expedite the CLARITY Act, which shifts crypto regulatory jurisdiction to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and a US court has ended Coin Center’s appeal against the Treasury Department over Tornado Cash.

Metaplanet eyes digital bank acquisition in phase 2 of Bitcoin strategy

Japanese firm Metaplanet plans to eventually use its Bitcoin reserves to acquire cash-generating businesses, possibly including a digital bank in Japan.

“We think of it as a Bitcoin gold rush,” Gerovich said. “We need to accumulate as much Bitcoin as we can... to get to a point where we’ve reached escape velocity and it just makes it very difficult for others to catch up.”

The Tokyo-listed firm, originally a hotel operator, started accumulating Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation in 2024. It currently holds 15,555 BTC and aims to boost that figure to over 210,000 by 2027, 1% of all Bitcoin that will ever exist.

Phase two of Metaplanet’s plan involves using Bitcoin as collateral to access financing, similar to securities or government bonds. “We’ll get cash that we can use to buy profitable businesses,” Gerovich said.

Gerovich said Metaplanet’s future acquisitions would ideally align with its strategy, so “maybe it is acquiring a digital bank in Japan and providing digital banking services that are superior to the services that retail now is getting.”#ETH