Bitmine Acquires 126,971 ETH for $213.18M, Lifting Holdings Toward 5% of Ether Supply

Bitmine bought 126,971 ETH last week for $213.18 million, its largest weekly purchase of the year, according to on-chain analytics shared by Lookonchain. The purchase follows 26,497 ETH bought the previous week and nearly 120,000 ETH the week before that.

The company now holds 554,000 ETH and has accumulated 0.59 percent of ether’s outstanding supply. It continues to target 5 percent ownership later this year. Chairman Tom Lee said the company increased purchases because it believes the recent decline in ETH prices does not reflect strengthening Ethereum fundamentals.

Bitmine had previously signaled it would slow accumulation as it approached the 5 percent threshold. The firm plans to issue a preferred equity class that pays dividends to raise additional funds. Its latest preferred share class, STRC, closed at $90 on Friday, 10 percent below par value.

Most peer digital asset treasury firms have halted purchases and shifted to selling since October.