BitMine Stakes $451M in ETH, Eyes Increase to 5% of Supply
BitMine Immersion Technologies increased its Ethereum staking exposure, depositing 154,176 ETH (≈$451M) in two transactions on Dec. 27 to earn staking rewards and relieve balance-sheet pressure from roughly $3.5–3.9B in unrealized losses. Earlier reports noted BitMine had also initiated large-scale staking (74,880 ETH) as part of a broader yield-and-infrastructure strategy (MAVAN) to offset losses and expand validator capacity. At reporting, BitMine held just over 4 million ETH — about 3.37–3.4% of circulating supply — with plans to continue accumulation and target up to 5% of total supply, potentially buying as much as $5.88B more and deploying up to $1B into staking as scale allows. The moves lock up sizeable ETH supply, reducing immediate sell pressure and increasing institutional staking influence and potential governance weight. Not all institutions followed suit: SharpLink unstaked ≈$104.4M in ETH on Dec. 27 and CoinGlass recorded institutional sells (~$164.9M) over a recent three-day window, though institutions still hold roughly $17B in assets. For traders, key points are larger on-chain ETH lock-ups from a major public holder, continued institutional accumulation amid some short-term selling, and potential liquidity implications that could support ETH price if staking flows persist.
Bullish
BitMine’s large ETH staking and continued accumulation is likely bullish for ETH price. Staking deposits lock tokens off exchanges and reduce immediate circulating liquidity, which can lessen sell-pressure and tighten supply. BitMine controls ~3.37–3.4% of supply and aims for 5% — further purchases toward that target would exert upward pressure on demand. The company’s staking also generates yield that offsets balance-sheet losses, making it less likely to liquidate holdings to cover losses. Offsetting factors: some institutions (SharpLink and others) are unstaking or selling modest amounts, and short-term market reactions to large transfers can be neutral or volatile. Overall, the dominant effect is reduced available supply and increased institutional staking participation, which favors price appreciation over medium to long term, while short-term volatility remains possible around large on-chain flows.