Bitmine Immersion Technologies, led by Chairman Tom Lee, has acquired 101,901 ETH, bringing its total holdings to over 5 million tokens, equivalent to approximately 4.21% of the circulating ether supply. This milestone was achieved in roughly 10 months, following the company's strategic shift from bitcoin mining to a digital asset treasury strategy in June.
Lee noted, 'Bitmine's ETH holdings have surpassed 5 million, marking a significant milestone in our pursuit of acquiring 5% of the ETH supply.' The recent purchase, valued at around $236 million, continues the company's trend of larger weekly purchases, while most digital asset treasuries remain inactive. Bitmine's total crypto and cash holdings now stand at $13.3 billion, comprising its ETH position, 200 bitcoin, $940 million in cash, and equity stakes in various companies. Approximately 73% of its ETH holdings, or 3.7 million tokens, are staked, generating around $264 million in annualized revenue.
Lee views ether as a 'wartime store of value,' citing its increasing use as collateral in financial transactions and its outperformance of the S&P 500 since the onset of the Iran conflict. He also highlighted growing use cases such as tokenization and AI systems relying on public blockchains as a long-term driver for the asset.