BitMine lifts ETH position to 5.98M, eyes bigger Q4 crypto rally

BitMine boosted its Ethereum holdings by 27,562 ETH last week, according to PR Newswire. As of Sept. 20, 2026, the company held a total of 5,983,940 ETH—about 4.9% of Ethereum's total supply. BitMine said its combined portfolio of crypto assets, cash and other investments is valued at roughly $17.1 billion. The breakdown includes $714 million in cash and securities, 212 BTC, $180 million in equity holdings in Beast Industries, and a $105 million investment in Eightco Holdings (ORBS). The company's staked ETH stands at 5,067,309 ETH, representing 85% of total holdings. BitMine valued that staked position at about $13.6 billion and estimated an annualized staking yield of roughly $357 million. In its weekly report, BitMine Chairman Tom Lee said the current crypto bull market started in late June 2026, attributing the move to capital rotating out of AI stocks and into crypto, strengthening fundamentals tied to tokenization and AI, and the four-year cycle reaching a bottom. Lee noted that year-to-date in Q3, ETH beat the S&P 500 by more than 6,519 basis points, calling it the best-performing global macro asset. Lee argued that ETH's Q3 outperformance could foreshadow a stronger Q4 rally. He said institutions were underweight crypto in the first half of 2026 as AI equities led returns, and he expects allocations to rise sharply in Q4—potentially adding to gains logged since June 30. Lee is scheduled to deliver a keynote at Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) in Seoul on Sept. 30.