Tom Lee’s BitMine Buys $820M in Ethereum, Expands Holdings to 3.24M ETH as Treasury Value Surges to $13.4B

Ethereum-Focused Strategy Accelerates as BitMine Seeks 5% Supply Share Amid $19B Market Liquidation

TL;DR:

• BitMine Immersion Technologies purchased 203,800 ETH worth $820 million, raising total holdings to 3.24 million ETH.
• The company’s crypto + cash + equity holdings reached $13.4 billion, equal to roughly 2.7% of Ethereum’s circulating supply.
• CEO Tom Lee called it “one of the largest deleveraging events ever,” framing the move as a long-term accumulation strategy.

BitMine Immersion Technologies, led by Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee, executed one of the largest single-week Ethereum accumulation events to date, acquiring roughly 203,800 ETH valued at about $820 million. The purchase, disclosed on October 20, 2025, elevated the firm’s total holdings to 3.24 million ETH—roughly 2.7% of Ethereum’s circulating supply—cementing BitMine’s position as the largest publicly listed holder of the asset. Ethereum traded around $4,000 per token during the buying spree, following a 10% price drop amid widespread deleveraging across the crypto price index.

Lee described the timing as deliberate, citing “one of its largest deleveraging events ever” that created attractive entry levels after nearly $19 billion in crypto futures positions were liquidated around October 11, 2025. Those liquidations followed renewed U.S.–China tariff tensions and risk-off sentiment across equities, pushing the overall coin market cap lower. BitMine’s move was framed as a contrarian bet on Ethereum’s long-term strength, with Lee referring to the blockchain as a “truly neutral chain” and reiterating the company’s goal of acquiring 5% of ETH’s total supply—a strategy internally dubbed the “alchemy of 5%.”

Following the announcement, BitMine’s stock (BMNR) surged between 7% and 9% across trading sessions reported by The Block and Decrypt. The firm disclosed total “crypto + cash + moonshot” holdings of $13.4 billion, comprising 3,236,014 ETH valued at $4,022 each, 192 BTC, $219 million in cash reserves, and $119 million in equity stakes, including Eightco Holdings. Combined, these assets account for one of the most aggressive Ethereum treasury positions by a public company. BitMine’s shares also rank as the 33rd most-traded U.S. stock, averaging $2.1 billion in daily trading volume, a reflection of investor appetite for exposure tied to Ethereum’s price movements through equities rather than direct token ownership.

Earlier filings from August 2025 showed BitMine holding 833,000 ETH, valued at $2.9 billion at that time, indicating a near four-fold increase in just two months. The firm’s strategy has shifted away from its original bitcoin-mining roots toward an Ethereum-centric model emphasizing liquidity, scalability, and institutional adoption trends that mirror the expanding crypto price index. Lee’s commentary underscores this evolution: “Given the expected supercycle for Ethereum, this price dislocation represents an attractive risk/reward.”

BitMine’s accumulation spree arrives as market volatility reshapes institutional sentiment around Ethereum. With ETH maintaining its position as the second-largest digital asset by coin market cap, the company’s aggressive treasury buildup positions it as a de facto proxy for institutional Ethereum exposure. The approach, described internally as “moving with lightning speed,” highlights a growing corporate thesis that long-term value in crypto may increasingly converge around major layer-1 assets resilient enough to endure macroeconomic shocks.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.