Metaplanet Shareholder Backlash Grows as SE Asia Crypto Funding Doubles to $680M

Japanese Bitcoin treasury company Metaplanet is facing mounting shareholder outrage over its 10th Series executive stock pool, which was structured as 20% of fully diluted shares and automatically expands as the company issues new equity to fund its BTC accumulation. Multiple shareholders have taken to social media to demand that Metaplanet cancel the 273 million additional shares created through the changes and provide greater transparency on future dilution decisions. The criticism has drawn a defense from Bitcoin Magazine CEO David Bailey, who argued that allocating 20% of the cap table to the team over five years "isn't some crazy number," though many investors remain unconvinced as Bitcoin trades around $77,221.

Meanwhile, new data from private market platform Tracxn shows that investment in Southeast Asian crypto firms doubled between 2025 and 2026, with the region recording 25 funding rounds worth $680 million this year, up from $319 million across 46 rounds the previous year. Singapore has cemented its position as Asia's preeminent crypto hub, home to 2,285 of the 3,957 blockchain companies operating across the region and accounting for 82.5% of all-time blockchain equity funding tracked in Southeast Asia. The concentration of capital into fewer deals signals a maturing market favoring later-stage players.

In regulatory news, US authorities have restrained more than $52 million in cryptocurrency linked to scam marketplace Xinbi Guarantee and its vendor network. The Justice Department's Scam Center Strike Force seized two wallets used by Xinbi to collect vendor payments totaling roughly $12 million, while seeking restraints against 47 additional wallets tied to money laundering activity. OFAC designated Xinbi as a significant transnational criminal organization and sanctioned Singapore-based SafeW Technology and Cambodia-based Anwen Technology for allegedly providing technological and financial support to the network. Separately, Citi announced plans to offer Japanese companies near-instant international payments through blockchain-based infrastructure, including outside standard banking hours.