ETH drops 12%, but Bitmine dramatically increases holdings by $100 million. What are institutions doing?

In the past 24 hours, as Ethereum’s price hovered under downward pressure, Tom Lee’s Bitmine has once again taken action—adding 103.7 million USD worth of ETH. This is not an isolated event. According to the latest news, Bitmine just bought 35,268 ETH (worth 108.7 million USD) last week, and now they are continuing to increase their holdings. What signals are reflected by this frequency and scale?

Whales’ Contrarian Moves

From the data, Bitmine’s actions are indeed noteworthy:

Currently, Bitmine holds over 12.61 billion USD worth of ETH, accounting for more than 3.5% of the total ETH supply. This means that out of every 100 ETH, more than 3 are in Bitmine wallets. More importantly, they are not just holding but also staking on a large scale—since the beginning of this week, they have staked 279.4 million ETH, with total staked ETH reaching 5.27 billion USD.

This timing is very interesting. According to related information, ETH has fallen 12.13% over the past 7 days, with the current price around $2,943. In such a declining environment, most investors might be watching or cutting losses, but Bitmine is instead increasing their holdings. What does this usually imply? Institutions believe the current price is attractive, or they have confidence in ETH’s medium- to long-term prospects.

The Logic Behind Institutional Confidence

The latest signal comes from BlackRock. According to related news, BlackRock expressed a positive outlook on Ethereum in its 2026 outlook report. They emphasize not the price but the application—Ethereum dominates 66% of the tokenization market, far surpassing BNB Chain (10%) and Solana (5%).

This is crucial. Wall Street institutions are not just speculating but positioning themselves in a new track. JPMorgan chose to issue its first tokenized money market fund on the Ethereum network in December last year, and Morgan Stanley applied for an Ethereum ETF product in January. BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF manages $11 billion in assets.

Bitmine’s increased holdings are a concrete reflection of this institutional confidence. Their operational logic is very clear:

• Tokenization trend confirmed: Asset tokenization has become a consensus among institutions
• Ethereum’s dominant position remains solid: No competitors threaten its position in this track
• Reduced supply supports prices: Large staking means circulating supply is decreasing

Long-term Impact of Reduced Supply

Here’s a detail that is easy to overlook. Bitmine’s staking reduces ETH’s circulating supply. According to related information, Bitmine has staked 1,838,003 ETH, and their MAVAN staking solution is expected to go live in Q1 2026.

When a large amount of ETH is staked, less ETH is available for trading in the market. This creates supply-side support. Analysts generally believe that corporate purchases and staking reduce circulating supply, which may support price increases.

Noteworthy Details

According to related news, Bitmine also received shareholder approval on January 20 to conduct a capital increase. This move is significant—raising the legal share count from 500 million to 50 billion, preparing for future financing and ETH expansion. What does this indicate? Bitmine is preparing for larger-scale increases in holdings.

Summary

Bitmine’s continuous accumulation is not a random move but based on a long-term valuation of ETH. Coupled with the tokenization strategies of institutions like BlackRock and the effect of large-scale staking reducing circulating supply, we see a relatively clear picture: institutions are expressing confidence in Ethereum through concrete actions. Short-term price fluctuations are not the focus; what matters is what these major players are positioning themselves for. Of course, this analysis is based on current data—markets always have surprises—but from the ongoing accumulation and staking by institutions, it’s clear they believe the current price is worth entering.