Barbadian tech entrepreneur and diplomat Gabriel Abed is once again making international headlines with his appointment as Vice Chairman of a new $1 billion cryptocurrency investment vehicle. In his capacity as Chairman of the Board at Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Abed joins a powerhouse team—including former U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross—backing a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that aims to hold a diversified portfolio of digital assets…

A former Blackstone Inc. dealmaker and a co-founder of stablecoin giant Tether Holdings SA are teaming up to raise $1 billion for a listed crypto vehicle that aims to hoard a portfolio of digital assets.

The capital is being raised via M3-Brigade Acquisition V Corp., a special-purpose acquisition company backed by the pair. The vehicle would hold a diversified mix of tokens including Bitcoin, Ether and Solana, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the discussions are confidential.

Neither Leverton nor Abed could immediately be reached for comment. Ross declined to comment.

The fundraising effort is ongoing and the details, including the $1 billion target, may change, the people said. Cantor Fitzgerald LP is among those advising on the deal, they added. A spokesperson for M3-Brigade declined to comment. A representative for Cantor didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Tether Co-Founder Reeve Collins and an affiliate of CC Capital — an investment firm founded by former Blackstone co-head of private equity Chinh Chu — purchased sponsor interests in M3-Brigade in May, according to an announcement at the time. The venture said that it would target deals related to digital assets.

The multi-token approach is a sharp departure from the Bitcoin-maximalist trade pursued by Japan’s Metaplanet and Michael Saylor’s Strategy, with the latter amassing a now-$60 billion stockpile in the original cryptocurrency. Meanwhile, the likes of SharpLink Gaming is focused squarely on Ether.

The vehicle’s strategy comes in the wake of President Donald Trump’s move in March to sign an executive order to create a Bitcoin reserve and a seperate multi-token stockpile for the government. Tokens from that US reserve could be sold under certain conditions — with the exception of Bitcoin.

Collins, who launched a precursor to Tether’s USDT and served as its chief executive in the early 2010s, is a chairman of a yield-bearing stablecoin protocol called Pi. Chu was Blackstone’s longest-serving dealmaker before departing in 2015. Chu has sponsored multiple SPACs, including deals for Getty Images and Utz brands.

Shares of M3-Brigade fell 12% to $11.04 as of 2:19 p.m. in New York. That’s the biggest one-day decline since September. The stock is still up about 10% this year. (BLOOMBERG)