BitMine Acquires $1.5B in Ether Post-Crash, Defying Digital Asset Treasury ‘Bubble’ Fears

BitMine Acquires $1.5B in Ether Post-Crash, Defying Digital Asset Treasury ‘Bubble’ Fears

A stark divergence in strategy is emerging from the wreckage of last week’s record-breaking crypto liquidation, as BitMine Immersion Technologies has aggressively bought the dip, accumulating approximately $1.5 billion in Ether ($ETH$). The move comes even as prominent market analysts, including Fundstrat’s Tom Lee, warn that the speculative “bubble” in digital asset treasury (DAT) stocks may have already burst.

A $1.5 Billion Bet on the Dip

While many investors are “licking their wounds” from the crash, on-chain data shows the world’s largest Ether treasury company has been actively accumulating. Since the market’s leverage flush, BitMine has reportedly acquired 379,271 ETH in three separate tranches: 202,037 ETH immediately following the crash, 104,336 ETH on Thursday, and another 72,898 ETH on Saturday.

This $1.5 billion shopping spree significantly bolsters BitMine’s already dominant position. The company, which only began accumulating ETH in July near the $2,500 level, now holds over 3 million ETH, worth $11.7 billion. This represents 2.5% of the entire circulating supply of Ether, marking a halfway point toward its stated goal of holding 5% of the network.

The ‘DAT Bubble’ and NAV Disconnect

BitMine’s aggressive asset accumulation contrasts sharply with a new, sober reality for the very corporate vehicles that popularized the treasury strategy. Tom Lee, while remaining fiercely bullish on Ethereum’s fundamentals, told Fortune that the DAT bubble may have burst. “If that’s not already a bubble burst… How would that bubble burst?” he questioned.

Lee’s comments refer to the fact that many publicly traded DAT companies are now trading below their net asset value (NAV)—the underlying market value of their crypto holdings. Research from 10x Research on Saturday confirmed this trend, noting that major DATs like Metaplanet are trading near or below their NAVs. This implies that public market investors are no longer willing to pay a premium for these stock-market wrappers and may even be pricing in a discount.

Bullish on ETH, Cautious on the ‘Wrapper’

The apparent contradiction in Lee’s stance—bearish on the DAT bubble but bullish on the asset—highlights a critical market nuance. His conviction in Ethereum itself remains unshaken; on Thursday, he told ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood that “Ethereum could flip Bitcoin” in a manner similar to how equities flipped gold after 1971. Lee’s view is that the market crash has purged excessive leverage, with leveraged longs near record lows, creating a “basement” from which the market can rebuild.

This suggests a market that is separating the underlying asset’s potential from the speculative hype that surrounded the publicly traded vehicles holding it. While the stock-market bubble for DATs has deflated, the corporate strategy of acquiring ETH for the balance sheet is clearly accelerating, as evidenced by BitMine’s actions and reports that Huobi founder Li Lin is raising $1 billion for a new Ether treasury.

The current landscape presents a complex picture: the “fast money” trade of buying overpriced DAT stocks appears to be over. In its place, large, well-capitalized corporate entities are engaging in a strategic, long-term accumulation of the underlying asset, viewing the recent market panic as a significant buying opportunity.