Bitcoin News Today: Bitcoin's Latest Gamble: A SPAC-Driven Bet on Web3's Future

Bitcoin Infrastructure Acquisition Corp., a newly formed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) based in the Cayman Islands, has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to raise $200 million through an IPO. The firm plans to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker “BIXIU,” offering 20 million shares at $10 each [1]. The SPAC, led by a team of seasoned crypto executives, will focus on acquiring companies in the Web3, decentralized finance (DeFi), and blockchain infrastructure sectors. These include wallet solutions, custody platforms, exchanges, lending protocols, and tokenized financial tools [1].

The SPAC has yet to select a merger target but has outlined its strategy to back firms involved in digital asset infrastructure, cross-border finance, and blockchain-powered payments. The leadership team includes Ryan Gentry, who previously served as head of business development at Lightning Labs, the firm behind Bitcoin’s layer-2 Lightning Network. Gentry also worked as an analyst at Multicoin Capital, a venture fund with significant exposure to crypto-native projects [1].

Jim DeAngelis, the SPAC’s chief financial officer, brings experience from Kroll, a risk advisory firm involved in major crypto bankruptcy cases such as FTX, BlockFi, and Genesis. Vikas Mittal, chief investment officer at Meteora Capital and sponsor of the IPO, is also part of the leadership team. Mittal previously led another crypto-focused SPAC, CSLM Digital Asset Acquisition Corp III, which raised $230 million earlier this week [1].

The board of Bitcoin Infrastructure Acquisition Corp. features prominent figures from the crypto industry, including Parker White, former engineering director at Kraken and current COO at DeFi Development Corporation. Other board members include Matt Lohstroh, co-founder of Bitcoin miner Giga Energy, and Tyler Evans, co-founder of BTC Inc and current head of UTXO Management [1].

The launch of the SPAC follows a surge in crypto-related fundraising activity. In just two days, Bitcoin Infrastructure Acquisition Corp. and other crypto-linked SPACs raised a combined $575 million. M3-Brigade Acquisition VI Corp raised $345 million this week, while CSLM’s IPO added $230 million. The momentum appears to be driven by strong investor interest in digital assets, as seen in the performance of recent listings such as Circle, which saw its shares rise nearly tenfold from its $31 IPO price [1].