Bitmine to halt Ethereum buying at 5% supply cap, Tom Lee says at Token2049
In brief
- Bitmine will stop buying ETH once it holds 5% of circulating supply, Tom Lee said.
- Bitmine is roughly 100,000 ETH from that threshold, Lee said at Token2049.
- Bitmine held 6,016,414 ETH, about 4.9% of supply, per its latest disclosure.
- Decrypt estimates six to seven more weeks of buying at last week's pace.
A cap, not a pause
Lee called 5% Bitmine's "hard cap," saying the level optimizes shareholder value, according to a Coin Bureau post embedded in Decrypt's report. That's a firm ceiling. He's previously signaled the company could even sell Ethereum earned through staking to keep its share of supply from rising above it.
At last week's pace, Decrypt estimates about six to seven more weeks of accumulation before Bitmine stops. That's the outlet's math, not a company commitment. Bitmine added roughly $41 million in ETH the previous week, and it's bought Ethereum every week since launching its treasury strategy in June 2025.
Lee said the whole thing went faster than the company planned.
"We thought this would take five years," Lee said on stage. "It took us a little over a year.
He added that Bitmine did all of it in the middle of a bear market.
The cost of getting there
Much of Bitmine's accumulation happened last year at higher prices during the bull market. Tracking data cited by Decrypt puts the firm's ETH holdings at roughly $4.5 billion in unrealized losses, with Ethereum trading near $2,570 on Wednesday (Decrypt didn't name the tracker).
What happens to ETH demand?
Bitmine's weekly purchases have been a persistent source of demand for ETH, Decrypt reported. Once the company hits 5%, Lee says that buying ends.
Ethereum fell 5.5% on the day, outpacing losses across most major crypto assets and dropping sharply during Asia trading hours. The decline came around the same time as Lee's remarks, though Decrypt didn't establish that one caused the other.
Disclosure: Decrypt noted that Tom Lee is one of several investors in Dastan, Decrypt's parent company.
Frequently asked questions
How close is Bitmine to its 5% Ethereum cap?
Tom Lee said at Token2049 that Bitmine is roughly 100,000 ETH away from 5% of ETH's circulating supply. Its latest disclosure showed 6,016,414 ETH, about 4.9% of supply. Based on last week's buying pace, Decrypt estimates about six to seven more weeks of accumulation.
Could Bitmine sell Ethereum after reaching the cap?
Lee called 5% Bitmine's "hard cap," saying it optimizes shareholder value. He has previously signaled the company could sell Ethereum earned through staking to keep its share of supply from rising above that 5% level.
