Why Tom Lee’s Bitmine is actively buying Ethereum (ETH) despite market fears

BitMine Immersion Technologies, the largest corporate holder of Ethereum (ETH), doubled down on its acquisition of ETH in December, underscoring its confidence in the asset.

Despite the tough environment for Ethereum, there was fresh buying. Rising currency inflows and continued outflows from exchange-traded funds (ETFs) indicate short-term pressure on the broader market.

BitMine raises 138,452 ETH in 1 week, controlling 3.2% of supply

According to recent disclosures, BitMine acquired 138,452 ETH last week. This represents a 156% increase over the previous four weeks. Its total holdings reach 3.86 million ETH.

This accounts for over 3.2% of Ethereum’s circulating supply. Additionally, BitMine is two-thirds of the way towards its goal of controlling 5% of the ETH supply.

Since adopting ETH as a reserve asset, BitMine has continued to make large purchases. From June 30th to October 5th, BitMine accumulated 2.83 million ETH. Since October 5th, he has added an additional 1.03 million ETH to his holdings.

Ethereum’s weakness throughout the fourth quarter made BitMine’s steady accumulation even more pronounced. Since early October, ETH has lost approximately 24.8% of its value, reflecting sustained downward pressure.

December broke away from that trend a bit. The price has increased over 4% since the beginning of the month, and BitMine’s ETH purchases have increased accordingly.

According to BitMine Chairman Tom Lee, the company’s acceleration in buying activity reflects its belief that ETH is likely to rise in the coming months, driven by several important catalysts.

These include the Fusaka upgrade, which was enabled last week and brings significant improvements to Ethereum’s scalability, security, and overall network efficiency. BitMine also points to the broader macro context, with the Federal Reserve ending quantitative tightening and potentially introducing additional rate cuts tomorrow.

Taken together, these developments form the basis of the firm’s view that market conditions may turn more supportive for ETH after several weeks of volatility.

“It has now been more than eight weeks since the October 10 liquidation shock event, which is long enough for cryptocurrencies to once again trade based on forward fundamentals,” Lee added.

Market conditions suggest short-term volatility

Nevertheless, on-chain data shows alarm. CryptoOnchain noted that the Ethereum exchange’s netflow to Binance has been surging. The exchange received 162,084 ETH on December 5, 2025. This was the largest single-day ETH inflow to the exchange since May 2023.

Investors typically transfer their tokens to the platform before liquidation, so large deposits on an exchange often signal impending selling pressure.

“Given the magnitude of this inflow, market participants should remain cautious. A supply shock of this magnitude, if executed as a market order, could lead to increased volatility and short-term price corrections,” the analyst said.

Additionally, Ethereum exchange-traded funds are also showing signs of weakening demand. ETFs posted record net outflows of $1.4 billion in November 2025, the largest monthly outflow on record.

This trend continues into December. According to SoSoValue, an additional $65.59 million exited ETH-centric ETFs in the first week of this month.

“Historically, ETF flow reversals say more about liquidity pressures than long-term fundamentals. When redemptions spike, it usually signals a crack in broader risk sentiment, not that the asset itself has broken down. If ETF outflows continue, short-term price action will remain volatile as liquidity dries up at the edges,” Milkroad posted.

The ongoing disconnect between direct accumulation and ETF redemptions highlights the fragmentation in the market, with retailers and institutional investors following different strategies regarding Ethereum’s prospects.

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