$1.5 Billion Ethereum Bet: BitMine Is Quietly Taking Over the Blockchain

A quiet yet massive accumulation spree has thrust BitMine Immersion Technologies into the global spotlight.

Blockchain data shows the firm added nearly 380,000 ETH this week alone, bringing its total holdings to over 3 million coins – around 2.5% of Ethereum’s entire supply.

Those purchases, totaling roughly $1.5 billion across just three transactions, position BitMine as the largest corporate holder of Ethereum worldwide. The company began building its position over the summer, when ETH hovered near $2,500, and insiders say it’s aiming to control as much as 5% of the network’s total supply.

Despite that bullish push, BitMine’s chairman, Thomas Lee, admits that not everything in the digital asset treasury (DAT) space looks healthy. Speaking this week, he noted that many firms modeled after MicroStrategy and Metaplanet are now trading below their net asset values — a sharp reversal from the premium valuations seen earlier in the year.

A Cooling Sector with Hidden Strength

Lee described the sector as a bubble that’s already losing air but believes the downturn will reward disciplined players while eliminating speculative excess. Research from 10x supports that view, highlighting that strong balance sheets and conservative strategies could help certain DAT firms outperform even in a cooling market.

Read More:

When it comes to his own conviction, Lee isn’t shy about where he sees the future heading. In a recent exchange with Cathie Wood, he compared Ethereum’s trajectory to the financial evolution of the 1970s – when stocks overtook gold as the preferred store of value. “Ethereum could flip Bitcoin,” he said, calling it the technological backbone of digital finance’s next chapter.

His optimism comes just days after crypto markets endured a $20 billion liquidation wave, the largest in their history. Yet Lee views this as a turning point, not an ending. “The fear is gone – that’s when real accumulation begins,” he told CNBC, describing the current market as “the basement, not the top.”

Even as gold continues to outperform, Lee argues that Ethereum represents innovation, not retreat. With prices still about 15% below October highs, BitMine’s bold accumulation may look risky – but if Lee is right, it’s the kind of move that separates short-term traders from long-term visionaries.