In a recent announcement, Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) revealed its ether holdings have grown to 4.8 million ETH, valued at approximately $10.2 billion based on current market prices. This positions the company close to achieving its target of owning 5% of the total ether supply.
The Monday statement also confirmed that Bitmine’s shares will commence trading on the New York Stock Exchange, transitioning from NYSE American, starting April 9th. The company currently holds a 3.98% share of ether’s circulating supply, which totals 120.7 million units, slightly outpacing Strategy’s 3.8% share in bitcoin (BTC), valued at $69,796.55 each.
Both companies have integrated their treasury accumulation strategies into their market narratives and are intensively purchasing assets amid declining prices. Over the past week, Bitmine acquired 71,252 ETH, marking its highest purchase rate since late December, as highlighted by Chairman Tom Lee. He described this acquisition as a strategic move anticipating that ether is nearing the end of a mini-crypto winter.
The company’s total crypto and cash assets now amount to $11.4 billion, which includes $864 million in liquid funds, 198 BTC, along with minor stakes in Beast Industries and Eightco Holdings.
Bitmine differentiates itself from Strategy in terms of staking; it deposits tokens to support the Ethereum blockchain, earning rewards through Mavan, its institutional-grade validator network that began operations on Monday. Out of the 4.8 million ETH held by Bitmine, 3.33 million are actively staked, representing a value of around $7.1 billion and generating annualized staking revenue of $196 million at a yield rate of 2.78%. This provides Bitmine with a steady income stream that Strategy’s bitcoin treasury lacks.
When fully deployed, Bitmine estimates its ETH holdings could yield $282 million annually in staking rewards.
Lee emphasized ether’s resilience during geopolitical tensions by noting an increase of 6.8% since the onset of the Iran conflict, surpassing the S&P 500 by 1,130 basis points and gold by 1,840 basis points. “ETH serves as a wartime store of value,” Lee stated, suggesting a perspective that was previously hard to justify but is now backed by data.
Currently, Bitmine ranks as the 96th most traded stock in the U.S., with an average daily trading volume of $987 million, positioned between Schlumberger and Adobe. Its investor base includes prominent entities such as ARK Invest, Founders Fund, Pantera, Galaxy Digital, and Kraken.