Crypto Journalist

Anas Hassan

Crypto Journalist

Anas Hassan

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Anas is a crypto native journalist and SEO writer with over five years of writing experience covering blockchain, crypto, DeFi, and emerging tech.

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Last updated: 

August 30, 2025

Japanese nail salon operator Convano has officially launched its Bitcoin (BTC) acquisition strategy, following its ambitious plan to raise approximately ¥434 billion ($3 billion) to purchase 21,000 Bitcoin, equivalent to 0.1% of the total supply.

According to an August 30 Bloomberg report, the Tokyo-listed nail salon company plans to become one of the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holders.

In response, Taiyo Azuma, Director of Convano’s BTC Holding Strategy Office, outlined a three-phase Bitcoin acquisition plan, with a target of 2,000 BTC by the end of 2025.

The portfolio is expected to reach 10,000 BTC by August 2026, as Azuma stated, “Our goal is clear. By March 2027, we aim to acquire 21,000 BTC and become one of the world’s leading Bitcoin-holding companies.“

Convano Bitcoin Acquisition Strategy Is a Response to Japan’s Economic Pressures

Convano frames its BTC pivot as a strategic response to macroeconomic challenges.

A prolonged decline in the yen, approximately 21% weaker against the dollar over the past decade, has increased costs for wages and raw materials in its consumer services business.

“We started to think about Bitcoin because of persistent yen depreciation and geopolitical risks,” Azuma told Bloomberg. “Bitcoin is a long-term store of value.”

Of the funds Convano has raised to date, ¥4.5 billion came from corporate bonds, and it has acquired 365 Bitcoin with it.

The Bitcoin acquisition announcement has driven Convano’s stock higher, with shares climbing 223.27% in the past month and surging 1,414.68% YTD.

Japan has become an unexpected hub for Bitcoin accumulation through publicly listed companies.

Metaplanet Inc., a former hotel operator, now holds nearly 19,000 Bitcoin, ranking among the top 10 global holders.

According to Bitcoin Treasuries, seven Japanese companies now rank among the top 100 public firms holding BTC.

However, the sustainability of crypto treasury strategies remains a topic of debate.

Bitcoin acquisition leaders like StrategyB (formerly MicroStrategy) face challenges as MSTR stock has declined 15.35% over the past 30 days while Bitcoin trades 12.85% below its two-week high of $124,457.

If StrategyB could face this risk, a heavy drop in Convani stock means its financing model can collapse.

When asked about concerns regarding Bitcoin price volatility, Azuma believes the perceived risk is actually beneficial.

According to him, Convano welcomes Bitcoin price drops for four reasons.

First, lower prices allow the company to acquire more Bitcoin. Secondly, higher volatility increases the company’s revenue.

He added that the combination of “low rates and high volatility” creates optimal conditions for reaching the 21,000 BTC goal. Lastly, the company can effectively manage associated risks.

Experts Warn Bitcoin Acquisition Strategy Built on “Shaky Ground”

However, experts like VanEck’s head of digital assets research Matthew Sigel argue that Bitcoin treasury strategies adopted by public companies rest on “shaky ground”, with rising risks that could wipe away shareholder value.

According to Sigel, when stocks trade significantly above their Bitcoin net asset value (NAV), issuing new equity generates premiums.

However, once stock prices approach parity with the value of Bitcoin holdings, dilution occurs.

“That is not capital formation. It is erosion,” Sigel wrote.

He suggests that companies using Bitcoin as a treasury asset should implement safeguards, such as pausing ATM programs and prioritizing stock buybacks while premiums exist.

Glassnode lead analyst James Check shared similar concerns about the longevity of corporate Bitcoin treasury strategies.

“My instinct is the Bitcoin treasury strategy has a far shorter lifespan than most expect,” Check posted on X in July.

Check argued that while early adopters, such as MicroStrategy, which holds nearly 600,000 BTC, have established their dominance, newer treasury firms face steeper challenges.

“Nobody wants the 50th treasury company,” he noted, warning that investors increasingly demand clear differentiation rather than another firm simply adding Bitcoin to its balance sheet.

Blockchain messaging protocol LayerZero has won the bid to acquire crypto protocol Stargate after a shaky first offer and a late four-way bidding war.

Stargate’s community voted on Sunday with a 95% majority to greenlight the LayerZero Foundation’s $110 million acquisition proposal, which it amended after holders of the Stargate (STG) token said the original deal was unfair.

Three of LayerZero’s rivals also put in last-minute bids or intent-to-bids to acquire Stargate, with one bidder, Wormhole, unsuccessfully asking for the vote on LayerZero’s acquisition to be paused.

LayerZero developed and launched Stargate in 2022, and the deal now sees the platform come back under its control. Stargate facilitates transfers across blockchains using liquidity pools that it says allow assets to be transferred natively instead of relying on blockchain bridges, which have a history of being hacked.

LayerZero claims record participation 

LayerZero co-founder and CEO Bryan Pellegrino wrote on X on Sunday that the Stargate community vote had “the highest participation of any vote” in the platform’s history.

The voting website shows over 15,000 addresses took part, with 94.76% representing 7.2 million STG tokens voting in favor, while 5.24%, or 399,400 tokens, voted against. 

“Not only did ~95% of the stake weight vote in the affirmative, but ~95% of addresses voted in the affirmative,” Pellegrino added.

Wormhole made offer for Stargate

Wormhole made an offer on Saturday after saying on Wednesday that it would “submit a meaningfully higher bid,” and that LayerZero “doesn’t create a compelling offer, which values Stargate’s ongoing business at an unreasonably low number.”

Wormhole pitched a $120 million all-cash purchase that would see stakers of Stargate’s token “receive 3x the projected revenue for the next 6 months, accelerated and paid immediately, as part of our successful acquisition.”

Axelar, Across also considered a bid for Stargate

The cross-blockchain platforms Axelar Network and Across Protocol also signalled their interest in bidding for Stargate on Sunday, with both noting that the vote on LayerZero’s bid would need to be paused.

Across co-founder Hart Lambur posted to Stargate’s forum that it’d been suggested to him that his platform submit an offer for Stargate, but he had “no interest in rushing an 11th-hour proposal, however if this process is slowed down and other bids are properly considered, Across will participate.

The Axelar Foundation posted to the forum a few hours later that it had a “strong interest” in bidding if a “competitive process” was created for the acquisition, it would pitch “a comprehensive proposal and encourage Stargate to collect all options before making a decision.”

However, Stargate Foundation lead Angus Lamps said in response to the bids that the vote on LayerZero’s bid can’t be paused, and Stargate “has been engaging with any parties” that sign a non-disclosure agreement and want to conduct due diligence.

Related: Aave drops over 8% on rumors of World Liberty Financial token deal 

LayerZero’s initial proposal pitched using Stargate’s excess revenue for a ZRO buyback program, which some Stargate community members called “not attractive at all” as it didn’t offer advantages to STG holders.

It revised the offer on Sunday to give Stargate stakers half of all top-line revenue for six months, with the remaining half used to buy back its LayerZero (ZRO) token.

Under the approved deal, all circulating STG will be swapped for ZRO at a ratio of 1 STG to 0.08634 ZRO.

Magazine: Solana Seeker review: Is the $500 crypto phone worth it?

]]> https://earlybirdsinvest.com/layerzero-wins-stargate-acquisition-in-4-way-bidding-war/feed/ 0 54978 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/wormhole-seeks-to-outbid-layerzero-for-stargate-acquisition/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/wormhole-seeks-to-outbid-layerzero-for-stargate-acquisition/#respond Fri, 22 Aug 2025 07:43:11 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/wormhole-seeks-to-outbid-layerzero-for-stargate-acquisition/

Wormhole, a cross-chain protocol, has stepped forward to challenge LayerZero’s $110 million attempt to acquire Stargate.

On August 10, LayerZero introduced its first plan to buy Stargate. That bid led to a revised offer on August 17 that received a more positive reaction from the community.

Despite the update, Wormhole argued that the valuation remains too low and that a stronger process is needed before any decision is made.

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In a message posted on Stargate’s forum, The Wormhole Foundation said it is ready to submit a higher offer and asked that voting be paused for five business days. The group explained that this delay would give time to complete its research, meet with the Stargate team, and prepare a full counterproposal.

Wormhole requested access to Stargate’s financial records, details of its assets, usage data, liabilities, and information on any legal or regulatory concerns. It noted that with this information, and the requested pause, it could improve upon LayerZero’s terms and provide a clearer picture of what Stargate is worth.

Beyond the price, Wormhole framed its interest as a chance to create a stronger combined platform.

Stargate stated that it brings established liquidity pools and steady user demand, while Wormhole adds broad integration across multiple blockchains and growth areas such as real-world assets.

Meanwhile, Thumzup Media Corporation recently expanded its involvement in cryptocurrency. How? Read the full story.

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We look forward to announcing the acquisition of assets and technology from Capitalise.ai, a pioneer of Israel-based No-Code Natural Language Trading Automation.

Founded in 2015, Capitalise.ai has developed a natural language platform that transforms everyday texts into viable trading strategies. Its unique language model and big data infrastructure allow you to ingest real-time and historical data across stocks, crypto, forex, futures, options and more.

The gradual deployment of Capitalise.ai features within Kraken Pro is expected to begin later this year.

Unlocking the power of natural language trading

As the Pro platform evolved, it has become increasingly necessary to make the most of its advanced features and both technical skills and deep trading expertise. Capitalise.ai removes that barrier and enables clients from all backgrounds to design, test and automate complex strategies using simple, everyday languages.

By integrating Capitalise.ai’s technology into Kraken Pro, users will soon be able to automate sophisticated strategies across digital and traditional asset classes without writing code.

“With this acquisition, Kraken Pro clients offer powerful new ways to act on ideas in real time. They will implement and execute bespoke strategies with unprecedented speed and confidence.”

“Capitalise.ai’s technology will change the way people interact with financial data and break the barriers that have long been holding scalable and sophisticated strategies to several people. This is a huge leap in democratizing access to professional-grade trading tools.”

Coming Soon: Proven Innovations at Kraken Scale

Capitalise.ai technology has been deployed with many Tradfi brokers and engaging results and exchanges, and has proven to be one of the most attractive automation tools in the retail and institutional space.

Co-founders of Capitalise.ai – CEOs Amir Shiovich and CPO Shahar Rabin – join Kraken along with key product and engineering talents, and continue to innovate within the Kraken Pro business unit.

Dogecoin As Thumzup Media Corporation does, it has won lifts on the news of a $153.8 million deal Get it Dogehash Technologies uses stocks and marks one of the most important transactions in the Dogecoin ecosystem to date. Thumzup’s digital asset strategy and Dogehash’s massive mining operations set the stage for a robust expansion.

$153.8 million deal to build the biggest dogcoin miner

The agreement between Thumzup Media and Dogehash Technologies has a clear goal of building the world’s largest. Dogecoin Mining Platform. A multi-million dollar stock deal creates a new company called Dogehash Technologies Holdings, Inc. Nasdaq Exchange Under the ticker XDOG.

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Thumzup has strong skills in digital money and how to nurture it, but Dogehash has been carrying out many years of large-scale mining operations. By participating in the power, Thumzup and Dogehash were able to combine skills and resources to grow much larger on their own.

Through the merger, the company was able to enter the Nasdaq open market. There, new investors can intervene to support Dogecoin. Supported by a million-dollar stock trading, the new entity uses Thumzup’s growth expertise and Dogehash’s mining power, Dogecoin Mining Sector. As a result, the most popular Dogecoin Meme Coin There may be more mining activities around the world.

Expand mining power with green energy push

Dogehash Technologies currently operates around 2,500 Scrypt Asic Miner machines. dogecoin (doge) and Litecoin (LTC) Every day throughout North America. But the company hasn’t stopped there. Over the next two years, Dogehash plans to add data centers equipped with renewable energy to the mix and expand its mining fleet until 2025 and 2026.

Since electricity accounts for most of the miners’ costs, this strategy could make Dogehash more competitive in the long run. Dogehash has been able to improve its mining capabilities by reducing its environmental footprint while using clean energy. This is an approach that could make it one of the leading leaders in sustainable crypto mining, which is growing concern in the digital asset industry.

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Dogehash is scheduled to be rolled out Dogeos, Dogecoin’s Layer-2 Protocolto make mining more efficient. Dogeos allows miners to earn additional rewards through Defi Tools, such as staking pools and liquidity pools, in addition to their regular block rewards. For miners, it means more ways to increase returns. For DogeCoin networks, that means greater support and more activity.

These tools provide Dogehash with many opportunities to expand revenue and participate in a variety of financial products related to mining. The company not only looks for ways to increase profits in the mining industry, but also explores other revenue streams that can increase its strength. These steps allow Dogehash Technologies Holdings to develop a more robust and reliable system that supports Dogecoin, not only create more coins. community Provides long-term value to users.

Featured Images of Dall.E, Charts on tradingView.com

Wormhole has jumped into the bidding plans for bridging service Stargate, promising a bid above LayerZero’s initial $110 million token-swap proposal.

It wants the Snapshot vote delayed so the community can weigh its offer.

Stargate’s numbers explain the interest. The bridge processed $4 billion in July, holds $345 million in TVL, and sits on a treasury of $92 million in stables and ether, plus $55 million in STG and other assets. The annual revenue is approximately $2 million.

“Based on our initial review, we believe that STG holders deserve a more competitive process, and we are prepared to submit a meaningfully higher bid,” the proposal said.

LayerZero’s proposal would transfer both the treasury and future income, which critics call a discount. Wormhole says the terms shortchange tokenholders and that “STG holders deserve better.”

A Wormhole–Stargate tie-up would create one of the largest cross-chain hubs in crypto, pairing Stargate’s unified liquidity pools with Wormhole’s integrations across dozens of networks. The foundation argues this would boost volume and long-term resilience for both ecosystems.

“The Wormhole Foundation sees unrealized value in the Stargate brand, protocol, and protocol assets,” the proposal said. “The Wormhole Foundation is confident that a successful combination of Stargate and the Wormhole ecosystem will lead to the most immediate and long-term value for current holders of STG, as well as current and future holders of Wormhole (W).”

Wormhole has requested a five-day delay in the vote, seeking more time for due diligence and a fairer process.

Read more: LayerZero Proposes $110M Stargate Token Merger in Consolidation Play

Wormhole Foundation (WF) entered the bidding competition for Stargate Finance, challenging LayerZero’s proposed $110 million acquisition.

In an Aug. 20 statement via X, WF argued that LayerZero’s offer significantly undervalues the cross-chain bridge protocol.

LayerZero Foundation announced its acquisition proposal on Aug. 10, offering to purchase all circulating STG tokens at $0.1675 per token through a swap for ZRO tokens. 

The proposal requires approval from STG holders through Stargate’s governance process, with a 70% approval threshold needed for passage.

Wormhole Foundation contended that LayerZero’s bid fails to reflect Stargate’s true value, citing the protocol’s treasury holdings and recent performance metrics.

Further, Wormhole shared that Stargate maintains over $92 million in treasury assets, including $76 million in stablecoins and $16 million in Ethereum, while demonstrating substantial growth momentum.

Performance drives valuation dispute

On-chain data shows that Stargate processed $4 billion in bridge volume during July 2025, representing a 10x year-over-year increase. As of Aug. 20, it had $348 million in total value locked (TVL) across more than 80 chains.

According to the Wormhole Foundation:

“STG holders deserve better. The current bid undervalues the protocol’s assets, brand, codebase, and team.” 

The WF added that these fundamentals justify a “meaningfully higher offer” than LayerZero’s proposed valuation.

LayerZero Foundation defends its pricing, noting Stargate’s backing of $0.14444 per circulating token compared to its trading price of $0.1637 per token at proposal time. It added that based on its calculations, the offer represents a premium on both metrics.

Differences beyond offers

LayerZero positions the acquisition as ecosystem consolidation, noting Stargate’s established infrastructure and user base. The foundation plans to direct all future Stargate excess revenue toward ZRO token buybacks while expanding the protocol’s mandate beyond traditional bridging services.

In addition, LayerZero argued that unified governance would eliminate resource conflicts between potentially competitive protocols.

At the same time, Wormhole Foundation proposed an alternative vision combining “Stargate’s unified liquidity pools with our broad ecosystem of integrations.” 

The foundation said this approach would generate “higher volumes, higher revenues, and greater stickiness,” benefiting both STG and W token holders. It also requested a five-business-day suspension of the ongoing on LayerZero’s proposal vote to allow time for due diligence and bid preparation. 

The governance vote requires a 1.2 million veSTG token quorum with 70% approval for LayerZero’s proposal to pass. The proposal was amended to provide additional compensation for veSTG stakers through six months of revenue distribution.

The amendment happened following criticism about the equal treatment of locked versus unlocked tokens.

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Ripple is doubling down on its ambitions in the stablecoin payments space with the acquisition of Rail, a global settlement platform known for its speed and enterprise-grade automation.

The deal, valued at $200 million, was announced on Aug. 7 and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, it is still subject to regulatory approval.

Ripple President Monica Long said the integration of Rail would position the company at the forefront of stablecoin adoption in global finance. She noted that stablecoins are rapidly becoming essential to modern payment systems and that Rail’s technology will help accelerate the shift from legacy rails to faster, blockchain-based solutions.

What does this mean for RLUSD?

This acquisition underlines Ripple’s ambition to cement its role as a leader in corporate digital asset infrastructure and to scale its stablecoin offering, RLUSD, into a dominant force in cross-border transactions.

Rail’s platform was designed to streamline B2B payments using stablecoins, and by 2025, it’s expected to process over 10% of the estimated $36 billion global stablecoin business payments market.

The combined platform will allow enterprises to initiate, route, and settle payments in multiple currencies and digital assets, including RLUSD and XRP, through a unified infrastructure.

That projection makes the platform a strategic asset for Ripple as it races to offer a more agile, secure, and scalable alternative to traditional systems.

Long underlined the importance of the deal, stating:

“Ripple has one of the most widely used digital asset payment networks in the world, and this acquisition underscores our commitment to helping our global customer base to move money wherever and whenever they need.”

Apart from that, the acquisition is poised to remove major bottlenecks for enterprise clients by combining Ripple’s deep regulatory licensing footprint and liquidity tools with Rail’s real-time settlement technology.

Moreover, Ripple will be better equipped to serve institutions looking to move funds globally without the operational burdens of holding crypto directly or dealing with fragmented banking partners.

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British Fintech and Neobank Revolut are considering acquiring US banks to accelerate their entry into the US market. According to a recent report by the Financial Times, published on July 30, 2025, Revolut is focusing on the acquisition of nationally chartered banks that already hold licenses.

If this is done, Revolut can skip the steps that often involve getting a bank license from scratch. By shortening the process of securing an independent banking charter, Revolut can simplify lending capabilities in the US market.

The report also shows that UK-based Neobank is considering applying for its own US banking license, instead of acquiring existing chartered institutions.

The British Prime Minister is pushing Revolut to end the licence “mobilization” phase.

The Bank of England says no: regulatory independence rather than fintech favors.

Revolut’s UK licensed clock expired on July 25th. I don’t see full permission. Meanwhile, the company is considering purchasing a US bank…

-Oscar Jeppesen (@Investor1fact) July 30, 2025

Revolut has been expanding the US market for some time. Currently, the largest financial market in the world, the US, is the largest financial market in the world, and is expected to increase deposits in contrast to the slowdown that many UK fintech companies are currently facing.

According to a report by the Financial Times, Trump’s push for deregulation has led investors and businesses to believe that the office of the money secretary will allow the bank’s charter process to be expanded.

As a result, Revolut carefully considers its options before making any concrete moves.

Explore: Top Solanamemme Coins to purchase in July 2025

Revolut is about to expand through the Latin American market, the Middle East

Revolut is reportedly currently in discussions about a funding round that will increase its valuation to around $65 billion, according to the Financial Times. The company will allocate some of the raised capital to promote future expansion plans.

Revolut has looked into similar acquisition opportunities in other regions as part of a broader expansion strategy, including plans to buy banks in the Middle East. Additionally, last month we confirmed the purchase of Argentine lender Seterem from BNP Paribas.

It also holds a banking license in Lithuania, which allows repetitive access to the European Union and Mexico, but the company has not yet acquired a banking license in the UK. The application was approved last year, but regulatory restrictions in the region continue to limit lending operations.

Explore: 10+ crypto tokens that can hit 1000X in 2025

Getting a US Bank License Rotating: You can restart Digital Asset Play

However, Revolut’s global ambitions go beyond traditional banks. The company already offers crypto trading across the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA), and last week resumed limited services in Hungary.

New Hungarian law requires crypto companies to secure domestic licenses and suspended early in the summer.

Revolut stopped encryption in the US in October 2023 amidst uncertainty from regulatory authorities. Now that perspective has changed, the pursuit of banking licensing could potentially clear the company’s path to deliver a wider range of services in the US, including digital assets.

However, it all depends on whether the application is approved or not.

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A consortium led by the founding forces behind Japan’s Metaplanet, known as the “MicroStrategy of Asia,” announced plans on July 3 to acquire Thailand’s DV8 Public Company Limited through a voluntary tender offer.

The cross-border alliance includes UTXO Management, Sora Ventures, Kliff Capital, Simon Gerovich, Moon Inc., AsiaStrategy, and Mythos Group. The transaction marks a significant move by prominent Bitcoin-focused investors to expand their treasury strategy footprint across Asia.

UTXO Management, co-founded by Tyler Evans and Bitcoin Magazine founder David Bailey, invests in Bitcoin opportunities across public and private markets. Sora Ventures, founded by Jason Fang, is known for backing over 40 companies across the Bitcoin, DeFi, and Web3 sectors.

Kliff Capital, Thailand’s leading alternative asset manager, is also joining the bid. The firm was founded by Annie Yang, formerly of Goldman Sachs and KKR, entrepreneur Tanat Tananivit, and prominent financial strategist Kip Tiaviwat.

Gerovich and Fang have spearheaded the Metaplanet’s Bitcoin-native treasury model. The bid further includes Moon Inc., listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and AsiaStrategy, a Nasdaq-listed firm investing in Asian public companies with Bitcoin treasury strategies.

Mythos Group, a multi-strategy digital asset holding company active in venture funding and corporate treasury deals, is also part of the acquisition effort.

The proposed acquisition unites institutional investors and Bitcoin treasury leaders from Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, and the US. It is expected to accelerate the adoption of digital assets within Thailand’s capital markets.

The financial terms of the tender offer were not disclosed.

DISCLAIMER: Sora Ventures is an investor in CryptoSlate.

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