Tom Lee’s Bitmine nears 5% Ethereum supply target with $20 million ETH buy as he predicts tokenization and AI ‘supercycle’

Tom Lee-chaired Ethereum (ETH) treasury company Bitmine's (BMNR) holdings have reached 6,070,092 ETH, worth over $12.9 billion at current prices after its latest weekly acquisitions.Bitmine bought 9,587 ETH last week, reporting on Monday that its total crypto, cash, marketable securities, and other investments stood at $14.3 billion. While Bitmine did not disclose an average purchase price, its latest acquisition is worth around $20.3 million at current prices."Vitalik Buterin, founder of Ethereum, declared at Devcon 8 in Mumbai, 'I've finally made up my mind, ETH is a store of value, ETH is money,'" Lee said in the statement. "This declaration by the founder of Ethereum, in my view, is a seismic shift, clarifying how ETH will capture value in this coming supercycle of tokenization and AI.""In my opinion, ETH was not a 'cash flow' token model, like HYPE or LIT, but rather pristine and trusted collateral, and reflective of how Ethereum is the Layer 1 chosen by the vast majority of financial institutions moving assets onto the blockchain," Lee added.As of Nov. 8, Bitmine also holds 216 BTC ($16.1 million), a $75 million stake in Eightco Holdings, a $180 million stake in Beast Industries, and total cash and marketable securities of $475 million, the firm said.'Alchemy of 5%'Bitmine's ETH holdings now represent around 4.97% of Ethereum's current circulating supply, which sits at approximately 122.2 million ETH, per The Block's ether price page. The firm is now 99% of the way toward its "Alchemy of 5%" supply target since embarking on its Ethereum treasury strategy in June 2025.As of Nov. 9, Bitmine said its total staked Ethereum stands at 5,227,037 ETH ($11.1 billion), or more than 86% of its total haul. Once its ether holdings are fully staked, the firm projects $359 million in annualized staking rewards, compared to $309 million in annualized rewards at current staking levels, Lee said.Bitmine remains the largest Ethereum treasury holder and the second-largest public crypto treasury company overall, behind Michael Saylor's Strategy, which holds 850,364 BTC ($63.4 billion) following its latest weekly acquisition.