Key notes
- Crypto mergers and acquisitions reached $8.2 billion across 88 deals in early 2025.
- Trump’s family network has direct exposure to the growing crypto industry through World Liberty Financial (WLF).
- Corporate Bitcoin (BTC) accumulation could tighten supply but heightens volatility risks.
Looser regulations fuel $8.2B in crypto acquisitions in early 2025
Crypto deal-making is accelerating in the United States after President Donald Trump rolled back several regulatory hurdles for digital assets. The policy shift is fueling optimism for a broader cryptocurrency market rally.
Major transactions include Twenty One Capital’s $3.6 billion SPAC merger backed by Tether and SoftBank, Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of prime broker Hidden Road, and Kraken’s $1.5 billion purchase of futures brokerage NinjaTrader. At the policy level, Trump also hosted the first White House Crypto Summit with leaders from Coinbase, Chainlink, and others. Meanwhile, World Liberty Financial (WLFI) founders met Binance’s CZ in Abu Dhabi to promote global crypto adoption.
Trump family’s growing crypto exposure
The Trump family holds a 60% stake in WLFI, a DeFi platform managing approximately $103.8 million in crypto assets, including Ethereum (ETH), Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), and TRON (TRX), according to Arkham Intelligence. Additionally, Donald and Melania Trump launched their own meme coins, $TRUMP and $MELANIA, with $TRUMP briefly reaching a $15 billion market cap.
Twenty One Capital’s SPAC is also led by Brandon Lutnick, son of Commerce Secretary and Trump ally Howard Lutnick, signaling broader ties between the administration and emerging crypto ventures.
Bitcoin accumulation strategies may tighten supply
One major trend driving M&A activity is the BTC treasury model. Companies like Twenty One Capital are accumulating large BTC reserves and borrowing against their holdings.
This strategy mirrors MicroStrategy’s earlier moves. Analysts believe it could tighten BTC’s circulating supply, which has historically contributed to bullish momentum during accumulation phases.
However, the model carries high risks. Strategy, a firm using a similar approach, posted a $5.91 billion loss earlier this year after BTC’s downturn. Tesla also reported a $125 million loss tied to its BTC holdings.
Altcoin markets could benefit from institutional integrations
Consolidation between crypto and traditional finance could boost altcoin markets. Kraken’s acquisition of NinjaTrader and Ripple’s purchases of Hidden Road and Metaco aim to integrate crypto trading and custody with established financial systems. This integration may attract more institutional investors into altcoins beyond BTC.
Chamath Palihapitiya, a prominent private equity investor, commented,
“Collectively, these transactions may bridge the gap between traditional finance and decentralized finance, driving institutional adoption while creating a more integrated cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
How to position yourself
While a full crypto bull market remains unconfirmed, the surge in M&A activity, BTC accumulation strategies, and regulatory momentum under Trump are positioning the sector for potential growth in the second half of 2025.
Ed Roman, Co-founder & Managing Partner of Hack VC, said –
“Those web2 buyers were missing-in-action for the last few years due to the NFT crash and FTX crash, but we expect them to return now that crypto is in-season again.”
However, traders and investors should remain cautious, as aggressive Bitcoin strategies can amplify both gains and losses depending on market conditions.
