Holding 43,000 Bitcoins at IPO, but the stock plunged on debut—Twenty One Capital (ticker XXI) made its first appearance on the NYSE yesterday, delivering a cold shower to the entire Bitcoin Treasury sector.

This company, which went public through a merger with Cantor Equity Partners, actually has impressive on-paper assets: holding over 43,000 BTC with a market cap approaching $4 billion. In terms of holdings, it’s definitely a top-tier player globally.

But the market isn’t buying it. The stock struggled around $11, well below Cantor’s pre-merger close of $14.

This isn’t an isolated case. Since this year, companies that went public based on the “HODL narrative” have been having a tough time:

Bitcoin prices are still high, but signs of a correction are emerging;
The overall risk premium in the sector is narrowing;
Investors are clearly less interested in the “I have coins, so I’m valuable” rhetoric.

Behind XXI are big names like Tether, Bitfinex, and SoftBank, so the backing should be solid. But now, investors are paying attention to a more practical question: besides holding coins, what else can you do?

Management has offered a few directions: building Bitcoin financial infrastructure, developing educational products, and so on. But honestly, these plans are still in the PowerPoint stage.

The market is waiting for them to prove one thing: can they shift from “assets on the balance sheet to support the scene” to “business capabilities supporting valuation”?

In plain language—holding coins alone is not enough; you need to show some real skills.