BitMine Immersion Technologies, the world’s largest known corporate holder of Ether, has resumed buying the cryptocurrency in 2026, signaling ongoing confidence in Ethereum despite expectations from some analysts of near-term price softness.
According to a Wednesday post from blockchain analytics firm Arkham, BitMine purchased $105 million worth of Ether in its first reported acquisitions of the year.
Following the purchase, the treasury company now holds 4.07 million ETH valued at approximately $12.6 billion, representing about 3.36% of Ethereum’s total supply, based on data from StrategicEthReserve.
BitMine also reported holding $915 million in cash as of Monday, funds that could be deployed for additional Ether purchases as the company works toward its stated objective of accumulating 5% of the ETH supply.
The latest purchases come alongside a notable rise in BitMine’s staking activity. On-chain data tracked by Lookonchain shows the company has staked more than $2.87 billion worth of Ether, including roughly 128,000 ETH added over the past few days.
The $105 million acquisition reflects confidence in Ether’s long-term upside, even as expectations grow for a near-term bottom early in 2026, according to BitMine chairman and Fundstrat Global Advisors co-founder Tom Lee.
Lee has forecast a “meaningful drawdown” in Ether’s price to around $1,800 during the first half of the year, describing that level as an “attractive opportunity” ahead of a potential recovery into year-end, according to an internal note he shared on social media.
Whales accumulate $11M in Ether as analysts watch for a post-2025 rebound
Large crypto investors, commonly referred to as whales, have been building spot Ether positions, according to data from crypto analytics firm Nansen.
Over the past week, whales accumulated $11.2 million worth of Ether across 38 wallets, while newly created wallets collectively purchased $1.16 billion in ETH. In contrast, so-called smart money traders reduced exposure, selling approximately $9.48 million worth of Ether during the same period, Nansen data shows.
Meanwhile, the 2025 crypto bear market served as a crucial “stress test” for institutional investors that had been waiting for clearer conditions before committing capital, according to Jimmy Xue, co-founder and chief operating officer of Axis, an onchain quantitative yield platform managing $100 million in live capital.
“The reset wasn’t just about valuations — it was about repricing risk,” Xue told Cointelegraph. “The industry has moved toward real-time verification and more compliant infrastructure, lowering the barriers for institutional participation,” he added.
“2026 may not be a retail frenzy, but we should see migration of liquidity where crypto finally functions as the backend for global finance.”
Jamie Coutts, chief crypto analyst at Real Vision, echoed that view, describing last year’s weak altcoin performance as a broader “repricing” of leading blockchain protocols based on fundamentals and network adoption, as a multi-year phase of institutional capital onboarding begins.
