BitMine completes $350 million buyback of 21 million shares, Tom Lee says
In brief
- BitMine retired 21 million shares for roughly $350 million; the program ended August 17, 2026.
- Executive Chairman Tom Lee called it the largest buyback ever executed by a crypto stock.
- BMNR fell about 3% over the period while ETH declined about 10%, Lee said.
- BitMine holds roughly 6 million ETH and has staked about 87% through MAVAN.
How the buyback ran
The purchases fell under a share-repurchase authorization BitMine expanded from $1 billion to $4 billion in April 2026. Over the window that closed on August 17, the company retired 21 million common shares for roughly $350 million.
The pace wasn't steady.
At its peak, weekly buying reached close to 6 million shares. BitMine's leadership said it believed the stock traded below the value of the digital assets on its balance sheet.
Lee also pointed to price action. By his comparison, BMNR fell about 3% while ETH declined approximately 10% over the buyback period, and he credited the repurchases as a key reason the stock didn't fall further. That comparison (and the "largest ever" label) comes from Lee himself.
The ETH treasury behind it
BitMine launched its Ethereum-focused treasury strategy on June 30, 2025, and it's bought ETH every week since. The company said it held roughly 6 million ETH, nearly 4.9% of Ethereum's total supply, which makes it the largest corporate Ethereum treasury. About 87% of those holdings were staked through the MAVAN platform.
BitMine projected annualized staking revenue of between $250 million and $363 million, depending on yield levels. That's the company's own estimate, not a reported result.
Its BMNP shares (a 9.5% Series A perpetual preferred) have climbed roughly 24% from their $80 issue price.
The trade-off
Treasury stocks usually behave like leveraged bets on their underlying asset, Crypto Briefing noted, so they amplify both rallies and selloffs. Every dollar spent on buybacks was also a dollar not spent on more ETH, the publication said.
Frequently asked questions
Why did BitMine buy back its own stock?
BitMine's leadership said it believed the stock traded below the value of the digital assets on its balance sheet. The company repurchased 21 million shares for roughly $350 million between mid-July and August 17, 2026, according to Executive Chairman Tom Lee.
How much ETH does BitMine hold?
BitMine held roughly 6 million ETH, nearly 4.9% of Ethereum's total supply, making it the largest corporate Ethereum treasury. About 87% of those holdings were staked through the MAVAN platform, and the company projected annualized staking revenue of $250 million to $363 million depending on yields.
