Tom Lee’s BitMine Adds $139 Million in Ethereum Ahead of Preferred Share Trading Start

Leading Ethereum treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies boosted its stake to more than 5.6 million ETH last week, adding 76,881 ETH or more than $139 million worth—along with nearly $274 million in proceeds from the completion of its preferred share offering, BMNP. 

BMNP is expected to begin trading on Tuesday with its 9.5% annual dividend rate paid out weekly. Proceeds are expected to be used to help acquire additional ETH, fund infrastructure buildouts, or buy back common shares of BitMine (BMNR). 

“The Series A Preferred Stock offering is good balance sheet diversification for BitMine,” Chairman Tom Lee said in a statement. “The Company’s current projected annualized staking rewards of approximately $219 million provide recurring cash flow to support the dividends related to the Series A Preferred.” (Disclaimer: Lee is an investor in Dastan, the parent company of Decrypt.) 

As it stands, Lee’s firm is staking more than 4.7 million ETH, or around $8.5 billion worth of the second-largest crypto asset, via its Made in America Validator Network (MAVAN). If BitMine were to stake all of its 5.6 million ETH, the company anticipates that it would generate around $269 million in annualized staking revenue. 

Shares in the firm are trading more than 6.6% higher on Monday, recently changing hands around $17.18 as markets move higher following an announced ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.

The share gain coincides with a significant rise in the price of its treasury asset as ETH has also surged nearly 9% in the last 24 hours, recently changing hands at $1,811.

While the jump pushes BitMine’s treasury holdings to more than $10.1 billion, the top Ethereum treasury remains down significantly on its ETH purchases, which now hold unrealized losses of nearly $9 billion according to data from DropsTab.

Even as ETH has risen on Monday, it remains more than 63% off its all-time high of $4,946 set last August.