BitMine buys $70M in ETH, Tom Lee eyes BTC ATH in January

BitMine Immersion Technologies acquired nearly $70 million worth of Ether across the weekend and Monday during a broad crypto pullback, and chairman Tom Lee now expects Bitcoin to reach a new all-time high in January.

Blockchain wallet records show a purchase of 16,693 ETH for about $50.1 million on Saturday and an additional buy valued at roughly $19.8 million on Monday, bringing the three-day total close to $70 million.

The buying aligns with BitMine’s plan to build one of the largest Ether treasuries. The company is targeting ownership of 5% of ETH’s circulating supply and estimates it is about 62% of the way to that goal. As of Sunday, BitMine reported holdings of 3.7 million ETH at an average acquisition price of $3,008 per token.

Lee has revised his timeline several times this year. In an interview on Sunday, he put the timing for a fresh Bitcoin record in January. “I do think Bitcoin can make an all-time high by the end of January,” he noted, adding, “a lot of it’s gonna depend on equities recovering, which we expect it to.” Earlier this year he projected $250,000 by the end of 2025, then more recently suggested the prior peak might be retaken by year-end.

Jeff Dorman, chief investment officer at digital asset firm Arca, pointed to supportive macro conditions and questioned the recent crypto weakness. On Monday he wrote on X that equity, credit, and precious metals have been setting records as rate cuts begin, quantitative tightening winds down, consumer spending holds up, earnings hit records, and AI demand remains strong. He argued that commonly cited crypto bear drivers have faded, writing, “MSTR isn’t selling, Tether isn’t insolvent, DATs aren’t selling, NVDA isn’t blowing up, the Fed isn’t turning hawkish, the tariff wars aren’t restarting.”

Dorman also highlighted access issues at large asset managers, noting many still face operational hurdles to buy digital assets at scale. “So while it’s great that Vanguard, State Street, BNY, JPM, MS, GS, etc. are all coming, they aren’t here today. And until it’s easy to buy via their existing mandates and systems, they just won’t do it,” he wrote.

BitMine describes itself as an Ether-focused digital asset treasury, meaning it acquires and holds crypto assets on its balance sheet rather than operating a fund or an exchange. A 5% ownership target would imply several million additional coins based on current supply.

As we reported earlier, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju said Ethereum is undervalued based on ETHVal, a 12-model framework that puts its composite fair value near $4,535, about 60% above spot. He also noted ether futures activity is expanding, with trading growth recently outpacing bitcoin and solana futures, and exchange-held reserves sit at an all-time low.