BitMine's ETH Hoard Hits 4.7% of Supply While $ETH Holders Keep Stacking the Dip 🐋

BitMine Immersion Technologies added 52,203 ETH worth $92 million to its balance sheet last week, lifting the publicly traded firm controlled by Chairman Tom Lee to 5,672,956 ETH valued at approximately $10 billion, or 4.7% of Ethereum's circulating supply. The company also holds 205 BTC worth around $13.3 million. "The best years for crypto remain ahead, in our view," Lee said in a statement. "Tokenization and the rapid progress in AI are expected to drive exponential demand growth for blockchain and decentralized crypto." BitMine has set a target Lee calls the "alchemy of 5%" by 2026, and he characterized the current market environment as the early stages of a "crypto spring." He also pushed back against concerns about the Ethereum Foundation's ability to fund future upgrades, saying, "In my opinion, zero chance of this 'crisis' happening for $ETH. Zero. Funding secured."

The purchases came as ETH struggled in the market, trading around $1,671–$1,752 in recent sessions, down more than 20% over the past month and approximately 64–65% below its August high of $4,946. Spot ETH ETFs have recorded $346.39 million in outflows in June and $540.88 million in May, including a $66.1 million outflow on June 22. Bitcoin, meanwhile, changed hands around $64,700 on Monday, up 0.8% on the day but down 13% over the past month and roughly 50% below its October record of $126,080, according to CoinGecko data. Crypto proved "more resilient than anticipated" in the face of new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's hawkish debut, according to CoinShares head of research.

Despite the price action, large holders continued accumulating. On June 23, a wallet linked to Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) withdrew 25,560 ETH, worth $42.62 million, from Binance, and BitMine separately bought 35,138 ETH valued at $58.65 million from BitGo and Kraken that same day. SharpLink, the second-largest Ethereum digital asset treasury, staked an additional 509 ETH this week, bringing its lifetime staking rewards to 22,102 ETH. Santiment data shows that wallets holding between 10 and 100 million ETH have steadily grown their balances to roughly 135.2 million ETH, while mid-sized holders of 100–1,000 ETH have increased purchases since late May, suggesting redistribution toward mega-whales and smaller investors rather than a mass sell-off. CoinGlass data also indicates the OI-Weighted Funding Rate for ETH has remained largely positive, with liquidity clusters building around the $1,900 and $1,600 levels.

BitMine has staked 4,718,677 ETH—about 83% of its total holdings—through its Made in America Validator Network, with the average stake acquired at around $1,733 per ETH, valued at $8.2 billion. When the full treasury is staked, Lee projected annualized revenue of approximately $268 million, with staking yields ranging between 1.7% and 3.2% APY. The company also began trading its dividend-paying preferred equity offering, BMNP, on the New York Stock Exchange last week, opening at $85 per share and recently changing hands at $88.34, up about 1.7% in early Monday trading. BitMine priced and completed the offering earlier this month, raising roughly $274 million. The structure mirrors Strategy's STRC preferred, which has fallen more than 10% from its $100 par value amid investor scrutiny over its funding model. BitMine's common stock, BMNR, traded at $16.22 on Monday, up 0.4% on the day but down nearly 90% from its 52-week high of $161.