Bitmine could soon stop buying ether after chairman Tom Lee said the company intends to end its accumulation program once its holdings reach 5% of ETH’s circulating supply.
The move would mark a potential end to one of the market’s most consistent sources of ether demand. Bitmine, an Ethereum-focused digital asset treasury company, began building its ETH holdings in mid-2025 and has since become the world’s largest Ethereum treasury.
Lee made the comments Wednesday at TOKEN2049 in Singapore, saying Bitmine will halt purchases once its holdings reach the 5% threshold.
“We only need to get another 100,000 ETF to get to 5%,” Lee said. “Now we’re going to stop,” he added.
The company is already close to its target. Bitmine said Monday that it purchased another $41 million in ETH last week, lifting its total holdings to 6,016,414 ETH. That equals roughly 4.9% of the 122.1 million ETH in circulation. At Wednesday’s price of about $2,580, the company’s holdings were worth approximately $15.5 billion.
Lee said Bitmine initially expected the strategy to take five years, but reached its current position in a little more than a year. He also noted that the accumulation took place during a bear market.
At the pace of last week’s purchases, Bitmine would need approximately six to seven weeks to acquire another 100,000 ETH, provided it maintains a similar buying rate.
Bitmine reported $643 million in cash and marketable securities in its Monday update. That gives the company more than twice the funds required to purchase the remaining ETH needed to reach its 5% goal at current prices.
Bitmine Has Been a Consistent Buyer
The potential end of Bitmine’s buying campaign is notable because the company has maintained a steady accumulation schedule. According to Bitmine, it has purchased ETH every week since introducing its ether treasury strategy in June 2025.
Much of that accumulation, however, occurred during the crypto market’s bull run last year, when ETH traded at higher prices. DropsTab data shows the company is now sitting on approximately $4.5 billion in unrealized losses on its ether holdings.
Ether was already under pressure Wednesday as cryptocurrencies broadly declined. ETH fell 5% over 24 hours to its lowest level since Sept. 20, while its decline was nearly twice the size of bitcoin’s.
