Tom Lee's Ethereum treasury firm sees its shares hit a new low as ETH revisits February's lows.
By Krisztian Sandor|Edited by Stephen Alpher Jun 3, 2026, 8:33 p.m. 2 min readMake preferred on Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine and cofounder of Fundstrat, speaking at Consensus 2026 in Miami (CoinDesk)Key Details:
- Bitmine, the top Ethereum treasury firm, now faces approximately $8.9 billion in unrealized losses as ETH fell below $1,800 amid the latest market downturn.
- The company's stock has reached its lowest price since it initiated its Ethereum treasury strategy in May 2025.
- This downturn illustrates the widening discrepancy between Bitmine Chairman Tom Lee's optimistic predictions and the current market conditions.
Bitmine Immersion Technologies (BMNR), recognized as the largest corporate holder of ether (ETH), is grappling with nearly $9 billion in losses following the cryptocurrency's decline below $1,800, which significantly impacts the value of its extensive treasury.
The shares of the company, led by Tom Lee, fell by 5.9% on Wednesday, dropping below $17 and marking a 28% decrease since early May. The stock has now fallen below its February lows, reaching its lowest point since Bitmine's transition to an Ethereum treasury strategy in May 2025.
This selloff coincides with ETH's return to its February lows. The second-largest cryptocurrency has experienced a decline of over 20% since early May, when Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat and chairman of Bitmine, claimed that the market's "mini crypto winter" was likely over and a new "crypto spring" was beginning.
Under Lee's guidance, Bitmine has accumulated over 5.4 million ETH, which accounts for about 4.5% of Ethereum's total circulating supply, valued at approximately $10 billion at current market rates.
However, these assets are significantly in the red, showing an estimated $8.9 billion in unrealized losses, as per data from DropsTab.
Bitmine ether (ETH) holdings and estimated unrealized losses (DropsTab)Challenges in Digital Asset Treasuries
The downturn at Bitmine reflects increasing challenges within the digital asset treasury landscape, where firms attempt to emulate the strategy pioneered by Michael Saylor's MicroStrategy (MSTR): raising capital through public offerings to buy cryptocurrencies.
Such a strategy has become more difficult to maintain as cryptocurrency values have declined, causing many treasury stocks to fall below the worth of their underlying digital assets.
MicroStrategy recently made headlines by selling its first bitcoin since 2022, raising questions about how it might manage future obligations related to its preferred stock offerings.
Bitmine's approach differs in several important ways. The firm primarily funded its ether acquisitions through equity issuance rather than debt, which alleviates concerns regarding leverage and interest expenses that some of its treasury counterparts face.
Additionally, Bitmine generates income through staking its ETH and running its staking service, MAVAN. The company reports that it has staked over 4.7 million ETH—approximately 87% of its holdings—and recently projected annual staking revenue at around $276 million.
Lee Predicts $250,000 ETH
forecasted that ETH could eventually reach $250,000 as tokenization, AI-driven transactions, and corporate staking redefine Ethereum's position in the global financial landscape.Currently, however, investors seem to be concentrating on more immediate challenges. Ether is once again near levels seen during February's downturn, leaving Bitmine's treasury significantly affected and underscoring the disparity between Lee's long-term vision and the prevailing market sentiment regarding the asset.
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