Jack Mallers steps down as CEO of Twenty One Capital

Jack Mallers is out at Twenty One Capital. The Strike founder officially stepped down as CEO of the Bitcoin treasury company on July 21, 2026, handing the reins to Raphael Zagury amid what sources described as disagreements with the board over the company’s strategic direction.

What actually happened

Zagury, who previously founded Elektron Energy, a Bitcoin mining venture, will now run Twenty One Capital. His resume includes stints at Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, and Merrill Lynch.

Twenty One had been exploring a three-way merger with Strike and Elektron Energy, a deal that would have brought Mallers’ payments business into the fold alongside Zagury’s mining operation. That plan is now dead.

Instead, the company is repositioning around cash-flow generation, disciplined capital allocation, and the acquisition of operating businesses. The stated inspiration is Berkshire Hathaway’s long-term ownership philosophy.

Mallers is returning his full attention to Strike, the Bitcoin payments company he founded. Strike remains a separate entity, and Mallers’ departure from Twenty One does not appear to have any operational effect on it.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino offered a measured sendoff, crediting Mallers with the “foundational vision and leadership” that got the company to its public listing.

The company Mallers is leaving behind

Twenty One Capital currently holds 43,514 BTC, valued at roughly $2.8 billion, making it the second-largest public corporate Bitcoin treasury in the world.

The company went public in December 2025 through a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners, initially backed by both Tether and SoftBank. In May 2026, Tether consolidated its grip on the venture by buying out SoftBank’s roughly 25% stake.

At the close of trading on July 21, Twenty One Capital shares were sitting at $5.32, implying a market cap of approximately $1.8 billion. That means the market is valuing the whole company at a meaningful discount to its Bitcoin holdings alone.

What investors should be watching

Tether’s dominant position in the ownership structure is another variable worth watching. The stablecoin company bought out SoftBank to consolidate control, and with Ardoino publicly endorsing the transition, it is reasonable to assume Tether was aligned with the board’s vision that Mallers could not accept.

For anyone holding XXI, the short-term question is whether the market rewards or punishes the operational pivot. A pure Bitcoin treasury play is easy to value: count the coins, apply a premium or discount, done. A Berkshire-style holding company built on top of a Bitcoin treasury is considerably harder to model, especially when the operating businesses being acquired have not yet been identified or announced.

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