A massive Bitcoin project has just been unveiled, and Adam Back, the cryptographer long speculated to be Satoshi Nakamoto, is the man behind it. Back is officially stepping into the spotlight by anchoring a $3.5 billion deal that could shake up the public BTC treasury landscape.
His newly launched entity, Bitcoin Standard Treasury (BSTR), is set to merge with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Cantor Equity Partners I (CEPO), which will bring 30,021 BTC onto its balance sheet. This would instantly rank it as the fourth-largest public Bitcoin holder globally, behind giants like Strategy and Tesla.
According to deal details shared by Back and his team, the BTC stash consists of 25,000 coins from founding shareholders advised by Blockstream Capital and 5,021 BTC from a PIPE offering - the first of its kind denominated in Bitcoin - from a private investment in a public equity.
The financing package includes $1.5 billion in fiat PIPE funding, a $200 million SPAC contribution and a mix of convertible notes and preferred equity.
But it is not just about size. This deal is making waves because of who’s involved. The SPAC is tied to Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial firm chaired by Howard Lutnick. Lutnick's son, Brandon, is also involved in the rollout.
This political proximity has not gone unnoticed in crypto circles, especially after HBO dubbed Adam Back the most plausible real-life Satoshi Nakamoto. It seems that Back is now opting for structure and security, shifting some of his BTC holdings into institutional hands and legally anchoring the capital in a U.S.-regulated entity.
Some of his original 80,000 BTC reportedly went through Galaxy Digital for sale, but the remaining 30,000 are now locked into what could be the most biggest regulated Bitcoin treasury move of the decade.
Vladislav Sopov
U.Today Editorial Team