- BitMine may reduce the speed of its Ethereum purchases as it nears its 5% supply target
- The company currently holds more than 5.18 million ETH worth over $12 billion
- Tom Lee says staking, tokenization, and AI remain central to BitMine’s Ethereum strategy
BitMine may finally be easing off the accelerator after one of the most aggressive Ethereum accumulation runs the crypto market has seen in years. Speaking at Consensus 2026 in Miami, BitMine Chairman Tom Lee said the company is considering slowing the pace of its ETH purchases as it approaches its long-stated goal of controlling 5% of Ethereum’s total supply.
According to Lee, the company could realistically hit that threshold within roughly six weeks if buying continues at the current pace. But instead of rushing there immediately, BitMine now appears more interested in balancing accumulation with broader strategic priorities across its growing crypto empire.
BitMine Already Controls A Huge ETH Position
The scale of BitMine’s Ethereum treasury is honestly becoming difficult to ignore. The company disclosed earlier this week that it held approximately 5.18 million ETH as of May 3, representing about 4.29% of Ethereum’s total circulating supply of roughly 120.7 million ETH.
That means BitMine is already about 86% of the way toward what it calls its “Alchemy of 5%” goal. Just in the previous week alone, the company reportedly purchased another 101,745 ETH, continuing a pace of accumulation that has made it the largest Ethereum treasury company in the world.
At this point, BitMine sits behind only Strategy in overall crypto treasury rankings globally. That’s a pretty remarkable shift considering how quickly the company scaled its position.
Staking Revenue Is Becoming A Serious Business
Part of the reason BitMine may feel comfortable slowing purchases slightly is because its existing ETH holdings are already generating massive staking income. The company said it had around 4.36 million staked ETH as of May 3, valued at approximately $10.2 billion based on ETH prices near $2,336.
According to Lee, BitMine’s annualized staking revenue has now reached roughly $297 million, while its staking operations generated an annualized seven-day yield near 2.91%. Those numbers highlight how Ethereum treasury strategies increasingly resemble income-generating financial infrastructure rather than passive crypto speculation.
And honestly, once holdings become that large, staking itself starts functioning almost like a business division. The focus naturally shifts from pure accumulation toward optimizing capital efficiency across the broader operation.
BitMine Is Expanding Beyond Just Buying ETH
Lee also hinted that BitMine’s priorities are beginning to evolve beyond simply acquiring more Ethereum every week. He pointed toward the company’s recent New York Stock Exchange listing, a $4 billion share repurchase authorization, and its growing staking ecosystem as areas requiring more attention moving forward.
The company also disclosed total crypto, cash, and “moonshot” holdings of roughly $13.1 billion, including 200 Bitcoin, approximately $700 million in cash reserves, and equity stakes in firms like Beast Industries and Eightco Holdings.
That broader diversification suggests BitMine increasingly sees itself less as a simple ETH treasury company and more as a large-scale digital asset infrastructure business built around Ethereum.
Tom Lee Still Believes Ethereum Benefits Most From Wall Street
Despite the possible slowdown in purchases, Lee reiterated that Ethereum remains central to BitMine’s long-term thesis. He argued ETH continues benefiting from growing Wall Street interest in tokenization, alongside the rise of agentic AI systems that require open, neutral blockchain infrastructure.
BitMine has consistently framed Ethereum as its primary reserve treasury asset because of its role in staking, decentralized finance, tokenization, and programmable financial infrastructure. That thesis hasn’t changed, even if the pace of accumulation might.
At the time of Lee’s comments, ETH traded near $2,300, down roughly 2% on the day. Meanwhile, BitMine’s stock traded around $21.97, giving the company an estimated market capitalization of roughly $11.8 billion.
