BitMine, the publicly traded bitcoin miner that's been stacking ether for years, just bought another 60,000 ETH — worth $126 million at the time of purchase. The deal, executed this week, brings the company's total hoard to 5.2 million ether, a position valued at roughly $11.1 billion.
The acquisition comes as ETH trades around $2,000, about 60% below its August 2025 peak of $4,953. BitMine Chairman Thomas Lee described the decline below $2,200 as an attractive entry point, and pointed to the CLARITY Act as a positive regulatory signal for the industry. He didn't say whether the company plans to keep buying.
The staking machine behind it
BitMine doesn't just sit on the ether. Through its platform MAVAN, the company stakes over $10 billion worth of ETH, collecting proof-of-stake rewards. That yield stream helps offset the cost of acquisitions and gives the firm a built-in reason to keep accumulating, regardless of short-term price action.
Russell 1000 on the horizon
BitMine was added to the preliminary 2026 Russell 1000 Index list. If it makes the final cut, the stock would gain exposure to roughly $12.2 trillion in assets that track Russell US indexes — a massive pool of passive money that could drive demand for shares. The final reconstitution is expected next month.
BitMine isn't alone. A handful of crypto-linked names also appear in the preliminary list: SharpLink Gaming, Gemini Space Station (ticker GEMI), Galaxy Digital (GLXY), Iris Energy, and Soluna. For some of those firms, index inclusion could be a bigger deal than the market has priced in.
The timing isn't great for ether bulls — $2,000 is a psychologically important level, and a break below it would test recent lows. But BitMine's buying at these prices sends a signal that at least one major holder sees value where others see risk.
The final Russell 1000 list is due in late June. That's the next concrete date to watch.
