Tom Lee’s BitMine Buys More Ethereum—But Both ETH and BMNR Are Diving

Bitcoin miner BitMine Immersion announced Monday that it had added more than $265 million in Ethereum to its treasury last week based on current prices, but the company’s stock plunged 12% as ETH and other crypto prices slumped. 

NYSE-listed BitMine, which was trading at $29.10 per share after surging near $35 on Friday, said that it had bought 96,798 ETH. 

The firm said that it currently holds 3,726,499 ETH, worth $10.1 billion and 192 Bitcoin worth nearly $16 million at today’s prices. BitMine added that it also had unencumbered cash of $882 million, and a $36 million stake in crypto treasury Eightco. BitMine’s stock is up 301% year-to-date, according to Yahoo Finance data. 

ETH’s price is down by 9.7% over a 24-hour period, and was recently changing hands for $2,745 per coin. BitMine paid an average $3,008 for its Ethereum. 

The asset is 45% below its August record of $4,946, although BitMine Immersion Chair and Fundstrat Global Advisors Managing Partner Tom Lee said in a statement that markets had stabilized after plummeting earlier this fall. 

“We are now more than seven weeks past the October 10th liquidation shock event, meaning the crypto market has found its bearings again,” he said. “Collectively, we see these acting as positive tailwinds for ETH prices and thus, we stepped up our weekly purchases of ETH by 39%.”

Crypto markets brutal October crash wiped out a record $19 billion in open interest. 

During this price slump, crypto treasuries have come under new scrutiny. On Monday, Strategy, the largest company in the category, announced that it had formed a $1.44 billion U.S. dollar reserve as a vehicle to provide “very smooth continuous dividends,” even when Bitcoin is down.

While this appears to offer a buffer to prevent the company from selling part of its 3.1% stake in the total Bitcoin supply, Strategy did not rule out potentially having to sell BTC, reiterating a recent shift in its position toward its holdings.  

MSTR has declined more than 8% to a recent price below $163 per share, according to Yahoo Finance. It is down 70% from its all-time high mark of $543 set last year. Share prices of other treasuries have also swooned in recent weeks. 

The biggest digital coin Bitcoin by market capitalization is now down by nearly 15% year-to-date, despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s crypto-friendly policies. BTC was recently trading for $85,000, down 7% over the past 24 hours. BTC is off about 32% since hitting a record high above $126,000 in early October. 

In a Myriad prediction market, more than 76% of respondents forecast that Ethereum will sink to $2,500 in its next big move with the remainder expecting ETH to jump to $4,000. Myriad is a unit of Dastan, the parent company of an editorially independent Decrypt.