Bitmine buys $81 million in Ethereum toward 5% target

Bitmine bought 32,447 ETH worth roughly $81 million last week. Ethereum's supply was approximately 120.7 million tokens, making 5% about 6.04 million ETH. Bitmine held 5,847,611 ETH worth around $15 billion as of August 23. Bitmine was about 187,000 ETH short of its target. Ethereum rose 31.5% over the last seven days. Bitcoin rose nearly 24% during the same period. ETH traded just under $2,500 and rose almost 3% over the last day. Myriad traders priced in 64% odds that Ethereum would reach $3,000 before falling to $1,500. The bearish outcome had reached odds as high as 74% less than a week earlier. Bitmine's accumulation began last summer, when its holdings reached roughly 1% of Ethereum's supply in August. Its holdings reached 2% in September. Bitmine's holdings passed 4.66 million ETH in March 2026. They reached 5.2 million ETH in May. Bitmine has staked 5,067,309 ETH, equal to 87% of its holdings. The company projects $330 million in annual staking revenue. Reaching 5% would not give Bitmine control over Ethereum transactions, upgrades, or governance. Bitmine has not said whether it will stop buying at 5%. Chairman Tom Lee said the weekly gain was Ethereum's largest since May 2025. Lee said easing financial conditions improved investors' appetite for risk. He also cited White House support for crypto. He cited Treasury purchases of long-term bonds as another factor. Lee said in May that Bitmine would slow purchases to avoid reaching 5% too quickly. Bitmine's holdings reached 5.79 million ETH by late July.