Bitmine Doubles Down: $344.4M Ethereum Staking Move Signals Bullish Bet for 2026
Staking season isn't over—Bitmine just dropped another quarter-billion dollar vote of confidence in Ethereum's future.
The Proof-of-Stake Power Play
While traditional finance scrambles to understand 'that crypto thing,' institutional players keep quietly accumulating. This latest move makes Bitmine one of the largest ETH stakers on record—right as the SEC debates whether to classify staking rewards as securities (how very 2023 of them).
Numbers don't lie: $344.4M worth of ETH now locked up suggests someone's betting against the 'flippening' narrative. Either that, or they know something Wall Street's coffee-fueled analysts haven't Bloomberg Terminal'd yet.
Finance jab: Meanwhile, your bank still pays 0.01% APY on savings accounts—but sure, crypto's the risky play.
Bitmine Holds 3.43% of Current ETH Circulating Supply
As reported earlier, the company closed last year with a massive 32,977 ETH acquisition, despite slower market activity in the last week of 2025.
“In the final week of 2025, total equity and crypto activity slowed, and yet we acquired 32,977 ETH in the past week,” said Tom Lee, Chairman of Bitmine, in a press release.
The largest “fresh money” buyer of Ethereum, as the company claims, has steadily grown to holding 3.43% of the current ETH circulating supply.
Bitmine (@BitMNR) has further staked 109,504 $ETH, worth $344.44M
In total, they have staked 908,192 $ETH, valued at $2.95Bhttps://t.co/1vbYSuGDkR https://t.co/XRS6pEPUkJ pic.twitter.com/5wLn0GrtTh
Besides Ethereum, Bitmine also holds 192 Bitcoin valued at $17.3 million, a $25 million stake in WLD treasury firm Eightco and total cash of $915 million as of January 4.
“Our analysis shows that Bitmine has continued to accumulate ETH at an accelerated pace versus other Ethereum DATs. We remain the largest ‘fresh money’ buyer of ETH in the world,” Lee added.
Ethereum Staking Demand Surges – Here’s Why
Per industry analysts, continued ETH staking could ease the near-term selling pressure on the asset, driving potential price upside.
In the case of Bitmine, the company has been staking Ether since Dec. 26.
Besides, Lee has signalled positive prospects for crypto in 2026, as digital assets tend to follow precious metals price movements. The company is aiming to acquire 5% of the circulating Ethereum supply, which currently equals to 6.04 million Ethereum.
