Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) said it added 71,179 ETH last week, pushing its total Ethereum holdings to 4.732 million ETH. The company said that stack now represents about 3.92% of Ethereum’s total supply. It also reported $10.7 billion in combined crypto assets and cash reserves.
Based on its disclosed target, Bitmine has completed about 78% of its plan to hold 5% of ETH supply in roughly eight months. The company, described as the world’s largest corporate Ethereum reserve holder in the source material, is still expanding its spot position at a faster pace than before.
Tom Lee says the buying pace has picked up
Chairman Tom Lee said Bitmine has been increasing the speed of its ETH purchases over the past four weeks. Last week’s buying was above the company’s earlier average of roughly 45,000 to 50,000 ETH per week.
Lee said Bitmine’s view is that Ethereum is in the final stage of a “small crypto winter.” He said volatility remains, but the medium- to long-term investment case is becoming clearer, which is why the company chose to build its position before any market rebound appears.
Market view shifts as crypto performance changes
On the broader market backdrop, Lee said crypto assets have shown a different pattern as geopolitical risks rise. In his view, Ethereum has outperformed the broader stock market and has also done better than gold over the recent period discussed in the announcement.
He argued that this points to crypto gradually building a role as a wartime store of value. Lee also said the inverse relationship between crypto assets and oil prices has strengthened and reached its highest level in nearly a year. Until equity markets gain confidence on the path of oil prices, he said rising oil could keep pressure on risk assets, while a stronger turn in crypto may come after upside oil risks begin to peak.
About 3.14 million ETH has been staked
Alongside spot accumulation, Bitmine said it is expanding infrastructure tied to the Ethereum ecosystem, with staking as a key area. The company recently launched its institutional staking platform, MAVAN, and has already deployed part of its ETH there.
According to the announcement, Bitmine has staked about 3.14 million ETH, equal to roughly two-thirds of its total holdings. The company said annualized staking income currently stands at $177 million. If all holdings are eventually staked, that figure could rise to $266 million.