BitMine Stakes $320 Million in Ethereum, Surpasses 70% of Holdings

Ethereum-linked treasury firm BitMine, founded by market veteran Tom Lee, has ramped up staking over the past 24 hours, adding roughly $320 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) and pushing its staked share above 70% of its holdings—an aggressive move that could further tighten liquid supply while boosting the firm’s yield profile.

On-chain data cited by Odaily shows that about 75,600 ETH was transferred to Coinbase Prime on Thursday UTC for staking purposes, following another deployment of around 61,200 ETH on Wednesday UTC. The activity marks the company’s first major repositioning in roughly three weeks, drawing attention from traders watching for signals of large-scale ETH ‘liquidity’ changes.

Blockchain tracker Lookonchain estimated BitMine’s cumulative staked amount at roughly 3.5 million ETH—about $8.1 billion—equivalent to 70.1% of its total holdings. Lookonchain also flagged three newly created wallets believed to be linked to the firm, which appear to have received close to 100,000 ETH before Thursday UTC. If those funds are included, BitMine’s total ETH balance could rise to approximately 5.08 million ETH.

That figure would place BitMine far ahead of other large corporate holders referenced in the report. The company is said to control more than 4.1% of Ethereum’s total supply and has reportedly set a target of reaching 5%—a concentration level that underscores how staking can serve as both a capital management tool and a market-structure force by reducing readily tradable tokens.

The buildup comes as institutional interest in Ethereum exposure and yield products continues to surface in public markets. Grayscale said its Ethereum staking mini ETF led U.S. ETP inflows in the first quarter with $337 million, according to a post from CEO Peter Mintzberg. Grayscale also highlighted network fundamentals during the same period, citing more than 200 million on-chain transactions and a stablecoin market size of roughly $180 billion—metrics often monitored as proxies for activity and settlement demand.

Elsewhere in crypto markets, Bitcoin (BTC) flows suggested mixed positioning among large entities. On-chain monitoring referenced by PANews indicated that Riot Platforms ($RIOT) deposited an additional 500 BTC—worth about $38.95 million—into NYDIG, fueling speculation about potential follow-on selling given the miner’s recent sale patterns. In contrast, data cited by Odaily and Onchain Lens showed Morgan Stanley adding 143.34 BTC (about $11.17 million), bringing its total reported holdings to 1,964 BTC.

Geopolitical headlines also remained in focus for risk assets. The International Energy Agency warned that escalating conflict in the Middle East and the prospect of disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz represent an unprecedented energy security threat, CNBC reported, with the agency cautioning that energy supply chain stress could ripple across global markets. Separately, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel was prepared to resume war with Iran and was waiting for U.S. approval, according to Odaily—comments that could amplify short-term volatility across commodities, equities, and crypto.

In the altcoin and infrastructure space, Telegram founder Pavel Durov said The Open Network (TON) plans to cut transaction fees to one-sixth of current levels within a week, aiming to fix fees at 0.00039 TON per transaction—roughly $0.0005—regardless of network load, per PANews. The change could lower user friction and potentially increase on-chain activity in the Telegram-linked ecosystem.

Meanwhile, the Ether.fi Foundation said it plans to allocate 5,000 ETH to a dedicated backstop mechanism to address a shortfall in rsETH following an exploit earlier this week and to reduce the risk of bad debt across DeFi protocols. The initiative is being coordinated with Aave and other participants, according to the report, as DeFi stakeholders seek to contain contagion effects.

Coinbase ($COIN) also added several tokens to its listing roadmap—Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL), Pros (PROS), and Kaio (KAIO)—noting that any eventual listing will depend on requirements such as market-making support and technical readiness, PANews reported. Separately, Belarus is advancing a regulatory framework for a ‘crypto bank’ regime designed to support around 26 digital assets—including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Toncoin (TON)—alongside services ranging from deposits and lending to staking, custody, and token issuance, according to Odaily.

For Ethereum, BitMine’s accelerated staking underscores a broader theme: as more supply migrates into yield-bearing setups—whether through corporate treasuries, institutional products, or DeFi—the balance between ‘circulating liquidity’ and long-duration holdings may become an increasingly important driver of market dynamics, particularly during periods of macro and geopolitical stress.