Bitmine Immersion Technologies acquired 26,497 ETH valued at $52 million over the past week, according to Tom Lee, chair of Bitmine. The purchase brings the company’s total Ether treasury to 5.4 million ETH, worth approximately $10.5 billion at current prices.
The acquisition marks continued progress toward Bitmine’s stated target of holding 5% of total circulating ETH supply (120.6 million tokens). At 5.4 million ETH, Bitmine has achieved roughly 90% of that goal, positioning itself as the largest Ether treasury company.
Lee framed the purchase against a backdrop of market skepticism. “Over the past week, we acquired 26,497 ETH. In our view, ETH prices are not reflecting the strengthening of Ethereum fundamentals, but then again, this is not surprising given we are in the early stages of crypto spring,” Lee said on Monday.
Ether traded in a range of $1,963 to $2,126 over the past week, declining 4.7% during that period. At the time of publication, ETH was trading just below $2,000.
The slowdown marks a shift in Bitmine’s acquisition pace. Earlier this month, the company purchased more than 100,000 ETH weekly for three consecutive weeks before moderating its buying activity.
Bitmine announced its Ether treasury strategy in July 2025. Lee’s investment thesis extends beyond price appreciation. He pointed to emerging use cases in decentralized identity and tokenization as foundational to Ethereum’s long-term value.
“As AI systems evolve, we’re now talking about using commerce and operating websites, you need decentralized identity and verification, and that’s really what crypto does,” Lee said.
Lee also cited institutional demand for blockchain infrastructure. “We know Wall Street wants to go toward tokenization; it’s a vast improvement in efficiency of how money actually moves, and it’s an innovation. That only happens on Bitcoin, Ethereum and other smart contracts. The future isn’t changed,” he added.
Lee’s public statements on Monday included a CNBC appearance, where he elaborated on Bitmine’s treasury strategy and the divergence between ETH market price and what he views as strengthening network fundamentals.
