BitMine is Turning its Massive ETH Stash Into a Revenue Machine

Tom Lee's BitMine ($BMNR) has quietly built one of the most concentrated staking operations in the crypto industry. The NYSE-listed firm added another 9,926 $ETH over the past week, pushing its total holdings to 5,815,164 ETH, according to the company's latest treasury update.

A Treasury That Commands Nearly 5% of Ethereum's Supply

As of August 16, 2026, BitMine's total staked ETH stands at 5,067,309, worth $9.6 billion at $1,893 per ETH. BitMine's ETH position represents 4.8% of the total ETH supply of 120.7 million tokens, putting the company in a league of its own among corporate ETH holders. BitMine's crypto holdings rank as the number one Ethereum treasury and the number two global crypto treasury, behind Strategy Inc., which reportedly holds 840,447 BTC valued at approximately $58 billion.

BitMine also repurchased 1.7 million shares in the latest reporting period, bringing total buybacks since July to over 20.8 million shares.

Staking as a Revenue Engine

Annualized staking revenues are now projected at $250 million, with 5.1 million ETH representing 87% of the 5.82 million ETH held by BitMine. BitMine's own staking operations generated a 7-day yield of 2.61% annualized, according to Chairman Tom Lee. That yield is broadly in line with the wider Ethereum staking market, where average APR sits in a similar range following compression from the 4%-plus levels seen in 2023.

The vehicle driving BitMine's staking ambitions is MAVAN, short for Made in America Validator Network. Lee has stated that BitMine has staked more ETH than any other entity in the world, and that at full scale, the projected ETH staking reward reaches $287 million on an annualized basis using a 2.61% 7-day yield.

The strategy is not without critics. Some observers argue that consolidating such a large share of Ether under a single US-domiciled validator framework introduces centralization risks and could undermine a network designed to be neutral and globally distributed. The concern centers on whether a single large validator could face regulatory pressure to filter transactions in line with US sanctions policy.

For now, BitMine's approach reflects a broader institutional shift toward treating Ethereum as a yield-bearing reserve asset rather than a purely speculative holding. With over $9.6 billion in staked ETH and a clear path toward $250 million-plus in annual staking income, the company is making a high-conviction bet on Ethereum's long-term fundamentals.

Sources:
BitMine Immersion Technologies August 17, 2026 Press Release (PR Newswire)
Ethereum Staking Statistics and Trends 2026 (Datawallet)