A second major corporate player in the cryptocurrency space is beginning to mirror the actions of the first. Bitmine Immersion Technologies, led by Fundstrat's Tom Lee, acquired approximately 101,901 ether, worth around $234 million, in the past week. This purchase is comparable to the regular weekly buys made by Strategy, a digital treasury firm led by Michael Saylor, as noted by prominent crypto trader Luke Martin.
Strategy's typical weekly purchases range from $200 million to $300 million, excluding large buys fueled by the sale of its perpetual preferred stock, STRC. Bitmine's recent purchase marks its largest weekly accumulation of ether in 2026, capping a four-month streak of increasing buys that started at roughly $76 million per week in early January.
The firm now holds over 5 million tokens, representing approximately 4.21% of the circulating supply of the second-largest cryptocurrency. This development is significant as Bitmine is now the only major corporate crypto buyer keeping pace with Strategy.
Most digital asset treasury companies paused or slowed their accumulation following the price drop in February, which saw bitcoin fall to the mid-$60,000s and ether drop below $1,900. Lee attributes the buying pace to the belief that ETH is in the late stages of a 'mini-crypto winter' and that a bottom is forming in equity markets. Since pivoting to its current strategy in June 2025, Bitmine has reached the 5 million ETH milestone in roughly 10 months.
The firm has staked about 73% of these tokens, generating approximately $264 million in annualized revenue from yield. As of early April, the company's total crypto and cash holdings stood at $13.3 billion. Both firms employ a similar approach to capital markets activity, with Strategy using preferred stock and convertible debt, and Bitmine utilizing equity issuance to purchase crypto assets.
Despite facing pressure in February and early March due to nearly $8 billion in unrealized losses, Bitmine continued to buy. Two months later, ether has risen 22% from its February lows, and Bitmine's accumulation pace has not only held but accelerated. While Strategy's April 21 purchase of $2.54 billion remains the largest single corporate crypto buy of the year, Bitmine's $234 million purchase last week marks the first time the structural baselines have come close to each other. If this pattern continues for another month, ether will have a corporate buyer absorbing supply every week, regardless of price, for the first time.