Bitmine Adds 12,535 ETH, Reaching 4.9% of Ethereum Supply

Bitmine Immersion Technologies bought another 12,535 ETH worth roughly $30 million this week, lifting its Ethereum holdings to 6,041,481 coins — about $14.3 billion — or 4.9% of the network's 122.1 million token supply. The NYSE-listed firm disclosed the purchase Monday and says it is now 99% of the way to its "Alchemy of 5%" target, a goal it reached in just 15 months.

The purchase extends an unbroken weekly buying streak that began June 30, 2025, when Bitmine launched its treasury strategy. Chairman Tom Lee has said the company will stop accumulating once it crosses the 5% threshold. At a reference price of $2,365 per coin, the latest buy leaves the firm underwater on paper, a consequence of stacking much of its position last year at higher prices.

What did Tom Lee say about the selloff?

Lee pinned the recent crypto weakness on a broad contraction in risk appetite rather than anything specific to Ethereum. He cited anxiety over AI funding and model safety, escalating U.S.-Iran tensions, midterm-election jitters and rising global bond yields.

He also argued that selloffs in AI and semiconductor stocks in markets like Korea and Taiwan — where crypto is widely held — spilled over into digital assets. He framed the dip as a historically attractive risk-reward entry when fundamentals stay strong.

How big is Bitmine's total balance sheet?

Counting cash, other tokens and what the company calls "moonshot" investments, total holdings reached $15.1 billion as of Oct. 18. The breakdown:

• 6,041,481 ETH (about $14.3 billion)
• 215 Bitcoin
• $582 million in cash and marketable securities
• A $180 million stake in Beast Industries
• A $74 million position in Eightco Holdings, which Bitmine bills as a rare public proxy for indirect OpenAI exposure

Bitmine remains the world's largest Ethereum treasury and the second-largest crypto treasury overall, trailing only Michael Saylor's Strategy, which holds about 848,250 BTC. Strategy recently added another $22 million in Bitcoin while buying back preferred stock.

What happens after the buying stops?

The operational picture already leans on staking rather than accumulation. Bitmine has 5,067,309 ETH — about 84% of its holdings — staked through its MAVAN platform, generating projected annualized revenue of roughly $309 million.

With the 5% threshold roughly 600,000 ETH away, the market's next question is what Bitmine's treasury looks like once the weekly bids end and staking income becomes the strategy's core engine.