Key Takeaways:
Bitmine Immersion Technologies purchased 27,084 ether last week for about $43 million, its smallest weekly buy since early May.
Bitcoin fell below $60,000 and ether dropped 25% in the second quarter as both assets head for a third consecutive quarterly loss, a streak not seen since 2022.
"Window dressing" — investors reducing holdings in assets that have fallen over the past three months before quarter-end — is driving the latest weakness, Thomas "Tom" Lee, chairman of Bitmine and co-founder of Fundstrat, said.
Bitmine purchased 27,084 ETH for about $43 million last week, lifting its holdings to 5.7 million tokens worth roughly $8.9 billion, or 4.7% of Ethereum's circulating supply. The acquisition was the smallest since early May, down from 52,203 ETH the prior week and well below the 126,971 ETH batch earlier this month. The company's total crypto, cash and investment holdings now stand at $9.8 billion.
The back-to-back losing quarters break from bitcoin's historically strong second-quarter performance and leave traders watching whether the weakness persists into the third quarter. BTC is down 12% in Q2 and ETH 25% lower, CoinGlass data shows, with outflows from US spot bitcoin ETFs, a hawkish Federal Reserve under Chair Kevin Warsh and a US dollar near a seven-month high weighing on prices throughout the period.
Bitmine's slowing accumulation pace
The latest purchase was the smallest weekly addition since early May, suggesting the company is dialing back its buying after months of aggressive accumulation. Bitmine nevertheless remains one of the few large digital asset treasury firms still consistently adding to its crypto holdings while many peers have paused purchases amid the market downturn. The company also holds 206 bitcoin, $555 million in cash and marketable securities, and stakes in Beast Industries and Eightco Holdings.
Lee pointed to positive developments in the Ethereum ecosystem that have been overshadowed by the broader selloff, including the creation of Ethlabs — a new Ethereum research organization that Bitmine helped back — and the Bank of England softening its stance around stablecoins. "This past week was a challenging one for crypto investors as ETH fell by 8%, even as Ethereum witnessed notable positive developments," Lee said.
What to watch in the third quarter
Bitcoin traded around $59,940 as of Sunday, down 0.6% over 24 hours and nearly 7% on the week, CoinDesk data shows. Ether changed hands at about $1,570, down 8% on the week. Altcoins fell harder: dogecoin dropped 11.7%, Hyperliquid's HYPE lost 10.6% and XRP slid 8.7%, while solana held up better at $70, off 3.5%, and tron proved most resilient, down 1.5%.
The third quarter will test whether the selling pressure was indeed seasonal window dressing or reflects deeper structural headwinds. Capital has rotated into semiconductor and memory-chip stocks amid the AI boom, drawing liquidity away from crypto, while a strong dollar and elevated Treasury yields continue to pressure risk assets. Traders will watch for a reversal in ETF flows and any shift in Fed rhetoric as potential catalysts for a recovery.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
