### Bitmine’s Ethereum Accumulation Strategy Nears Its Conclusion
The consistent buying pressure that has characterized the Ethereum market since mid-2025 is approaching a definitive end. Tom Lee, Chairman of Bitmine Immersion Technologies, announced at the Token2049 conference in Singapore that the firm intends to cease its aggressive acquisition of ETH as soon as its total holdings account for 5% of the asset’s circulating supply.
#### Reaching the 5% Milestone
Currently, Bitmine’s portfolio contains 6,016,414 ETH, representing approximately 4.9% of the total supply. According to Lee, the company is within striking distance of its self-imposed cap, requiring only an additional 100,000 ETH to reach the target. Based on the firm’s current weekly purchasing velocity, this accumulation phase is expected to conclude within the next six to seven weeks.
This shift in strategy marks a significant pivot for the market. Since June 2025, Bitmine has acted as a reliable, institutional-grade buyer, providing a floor for Ethereum’s price action. With this persistent demand set to vanish, market analysts are closely watching how the asset’s liquidity will react once this major buyer exits the scene.
#### A Challenging Path to Accumulation
Reflecting on the firm’s aggressive strategy, Lee noted that the timeline for reaching this threshold was significantly compressed. “We initially projected a five-year window to reach this level of ownership,” Lee explained during his keynote. “Instead, we achieved it in just over a year, and notably, we executed this strategy throughout the volatility of a bear market.”
Despite the scale of the acquisition, the firm’s balance sheet reflects the harsh realities of market timing. Bitmine is currently sitting on approximately $4.5 billion in unrealized losses. This deficit stems from the fact that a substantial portion of their holdings was acquired during the peak of the previous bull cycle, when Ethereum’s price was significantly higher than current valuations.
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#### Market Implications
The removal of a buyer of this magnitude is rarely neutral. In traditional finance, when a major entity stops purchasing a specific asset, it often leads to a period of price discovery as the market adjusts to the new supply-demand equilibrium. For Ethereum, which has faced increased competition from alternative Layer-1 blockchains and shifting investor sentiment, the cessation of Bitmine’s weekly buys could introduce new volatility. Investors are now left to wonder if the broader market demand is robust enough to absorb the supply that Bitmine was previously absorbing.
