Tom Lee’s BitMine Immersion has ramped up its Ethereum holdings to a staggering $13.2 billion. On October 6th, the firm announced that it holds 2.83 million ETH tokens and 192 Bitcoin, in addition to $456 million in cash. BitMine has now positioned itself as the second-largest corporate crypto treasury, following the strategy laid out by Michael Saylor. Fundstrat CIO and BitMine chairman, Tom Lee, asserts that ETH is the “biggest macro trade” of the decade, propelled by advancements in AI and the crypto landscape.
He noted that the ETH price remains at a “discount” to the future, which is why his firm is targeting 5% of the total ETH supply (6 million ETH). “We remain confident that the two supercycle investing narratives remain AI and crypto…” With ETH’s price currently reflecting a discount to its future potential, this is a positive indicator for the token. This rationale underpins BitMine’s decision to designate ETH as its primary treasury asset. In other words, BitMine had only reached the midpoint of its ETH accumulation goal, with approximately 3.2 million ETH still to acquire.
Bitwise’s CEO Hunter Horsley described the rapid ETH accumulation accomplished in under six months as “legendary.” In October, the total ETH treasury holdings and ETFs surged to 5.66 million ETH, valued at $26.45 billion, marking an increase of over $4 billion since Q2. While U.S. Spot ETH ETF inflows have experienced a slight deceleration in Q4 relative to Q3, the overall demand from crypto treasuries and ETFs may contribute to a rebound in ETH prices. Moreover, the ETH supply crunch appears to be gradually taking hold. Since July, the ETH Exchange Reserve has seen a decline from over 20 million ETH to 16.1 million as of the latest update. Approximately 4 million ETH has been transferred off exchanges, resulting in a 20% decrease in the available supply.
This may mitigate significant ETH corrections. Indeed, the activation of staking on the Grayscale ETH ETF could lead to a resurgence in demand from ETFs, particularly if other issuers decide to follow this trend. In the latest developments, the altcoin has surged 22% from its September low of $3.8K, successfully flipping bullish after maintaining the $4.5K level as support. A retest of $4.8K and a potential surge to $5K appears to be on the table. However, the OBV hit a resistance level, prompting some whales to cash in on profits exceeding $70 million from the recovery.