BitMine Buys 96.8K ETH, Cites Fusaka Upgrade and Fed Policy as Catalysts

Published: 2025-12-01 14:46:05 |

BitMine Immersion Technologies, led by Thomas (Tom) Lee, purchased 96,798 ETH last week, raising its holdings to about 3.73 million ETH (≈$10.5bn) while also holding 192 BTC, $882m cash and a $36m stake in Eightco. The firm increased weekly ETH purchases by 39% despite sitting on roughly $4bn in unrealized losses on its ether position and amid a broader pullback by digital asset treasuries. BitMine cited Ethereum’s upcoming Fusaka network upgrade (expected Dec 3) and an anticipated Federal Reserve pause in quantitative tightening and potential rate cuts as positive tailwinds for ETH. The firm’s shares fell pre-market after a near-term ETH price drop. Key takeaways for traders: large institutional accumulation continues from a major ETH treasury despite marked unrealized losses; Fusaka and macro policy are being priced as catalysts; such concentrated buying can support ETH demand but also concentrates risk if prices weaken further.

Bullish

This is classified as bullish because a large, high-profile treasury (BitMine) materially increased ETH purchases (96.8K ETH) and raised weekly buy pace by 39% despite large unrealized losses. Institutional accumulation from a major player signals demand support and can provide a psychological and technical floor for ETH prices, particularly ahead of a network upgrade (Fusaka) that traders expect to improve scalability and utility. The firm explicitly cites macro tailwinds — a likely Fed pause on QT and potential rate cuts — which historically reduce real yields and can shift capital toward risk assets, supporting crypto prices. Short-term impact: Positive price support from the announcement may attract momentum traders and other treasuries to re-enter, but the market reacted with an immediate ETH dip and BitMine share weakness, highlighting vulnerability to broader market volatility. Expect increased intraday volatility around the upgrade date and macro announcements. Long-term impact: Continued institutional accumulation by a large ETH treasury strengthens structural demand and could reduce circulating supply available to spot markets, supporting a bullish medium-term thesis if network upgrades deliver promised benefits. However, concentration risk and large unrealized losses mean selling pressure could emerge if macro conditions worsen or the upgrade underdelivers. Similar past events: Grayscale/constituent trust accumulations and announced buys by treasury-like entities have historically supported rallies, while large unrealized losses have preceded selective selling during wider drawdowns. Traders should monitor on-chain outflows from BitMine (if disclosed), ETF/treasury buying behavior, Fusaka activation outcomes, and Fed communications to gauge persistence of the bullish case.