Bitcoin miners and corporate treasury holders are building positions as cryptocurrency markets recover, with Bitcoin rallying approximately 23% in late August and corporate accumulation strategies returning to direct exposure after months of pivot toward artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Strive purchased 1,800 BTC between August 24 and 28 at an approximate cost of $143 million, following an earlier purchase of 1,110 BTC in the prior week at an average price of $73,409 per coin. The purchases brought Strive’s total holdings to 23,156 BTC at an average price of $79,431 per coin including fees. Strive is now the fifth-largest publicly traded corporate Bitcoin holder.
Strategy, another major corporate holder, acquired 4,603 BTC at an average price of $80,318 per coin, pushing its holdings above 845,000 BTC. The purchases mark Strategy’s return to buying after four sales since May.
Bitcoin mining stocks captured much of the gains. Canaan, American Bitcoin, and Cango saw increases ranging from 41% to 67% in August, while mining stocks broadly gained as much as 67% during the month. BlocksBridge Consulting identified three catalysts for the rally: US Treasury liquidity expansion supporting buybacks announced August 19, renewed regulatory optimism following a White House crypto meeting, and a sharp short squeeze that liquidated more than 1.6 billion in positions.
Bitmine, a corporate Ether holder, has extended its buying streak to 65 consecutive weeks despite carrying $5.1 billion in unrealized losses. The company added 53,501 ETH last week, bringing its total holdings to 5.9 million ETH valued at $14.8 billion based on a price of $2,511 per coin. Bitmine’s Ether holdings represent 4.9% of Ethereum’s circulating supply of 120.7 million ETH.
“We believe this sets the stage for institutions to add to their crypto holdings given the substantial outperformance versus other macro assets,” said Tom Lee, Bitmine chairman, noting that Ether, Bitcoin, and Solana have been the three best-performing major assets since June 30, 2026.
Bitmine is targeting 5% ownership of Ethereum’s circulating supply, suggesting potential for further accumulation.
Institutional Stablecoin Consortium
A consortium of 21 major financial institutions is developing stablecoins for institutional settlement, building on a prior initiative. The group includes Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Citi, and spans North America, Europe, East Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
The consortium plans to launch a US dollar-denominated stablecoin in the first half of 2027, with a broader G7 stablecoin venture scheduled for 2027. The effort expands on an October 2025 initiative announced by 10 banks exploring reserve-backed digital money on public blockchains.
The renewed corporate and institutional focus on direct crypto exposure follows a period in which Bitcoin miners and treasury holders had courted AI investors, pivoting back to cryptocurrency during the August market recovery.
