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BitMine chair Tom Lee defended the company’s Ethereum treasury strategy after unrealized losses exceeded $6 billion, arguing that volatility during market downturns is a normal feature of cryptocurrency holdings rather than evidence of strategic failure.
Lee questioned why corporate crypto treasuries face harsher criticism than spot Ethereum ETFs experiencing similar drawdowns, as BitMine continued accumulating ETH despite the paper losses—adding 40,302 tokens in the week ending January 25 to bring total holdings to 4.24 million ETH.
According to a recent company release, BitMine ETH treasury holdings climbed to 4.24 million ETH as of January 25, following the acquisition of 40,302 ETH in the prior week alone.
While the accumulation strategy boosted exposure, it also magnified downside volatility as Ether retraced from recent highs.
Unrealized losses now exceed $6 billion, a figure that has fueled renewed debate around corporate-style crypto treasuries—particularly those centered on Ethereum rather than Bitcoin.
Still, BitMine has emphasized that the losses remain on paper. No forced selling has occurred, and the company continues to frame its ETH accumulation as a long-duration strategic bet rather than a short-term trade.
Lee, a well-known market strategist and long-time crypto bull, defended the BitMine ETH treasury approach by pointing to structural market stress rather than company-specific missteps.
“This kind of drawdown is normal during periods of market deleveraging,” Lee said, citing the aftershocks of a record $19 billion liquidation event in October that rippled across derivatives markets.
He also pointed to capital rotation into traditional safe havens, noting that surges in metals flows often drain risk appetite from crypto during fragile macro conditions.
BitMine has consistently positioned its ETH treasury as more than a passive balance-sheet allocation.
The company is pairing token accumulation with staking infrastructure, allowing it to generate yield while reinforcing Ethereum’s role as a settlement layer for future capital markets.
In its latest statement, BitMine linked the strategy to a shifting political and institutional backdrop.
The company quoted U.S. President Donald Trump, who recently said Congress is advancing crypto market structure legislation that he hopes to sign into law soon.
That evolving regulatory clarity, BitMine argues, strengthens the long-term case for Ethereum-based tokenization across traditional finance.
Lee has questioned why BitMine ETH treasury drawdowns are drawing sharper criticism than similar volatility experienced by spot Ethereum ETFs.
“If volatility alone invalidates the strategy, then the same logic would apply to ETFs,” Lee suggested, highlighting what he sees as an uneven standard applied to corporate crypto treasuries.
The episode has reopened industry-wide debate over whether companies holding crypto directly should be judged differently from regulated investment products—especially when both are exposed to the same market forces.
Despite the noise, Lee appears firmly committed to the BitMine ETH treasury thesis. He continues to argue that Ethereum sits at the center of where finance is heading, from on-chain settlement to tokenized real-world assets.
Rather than retreating, BitMine’s steady accumulation signals confidence that current losses represent a cyclical setback—not a structural failure.
For now, the company is standing its ground, betting that time, regulation, and adoption will ultimately vindicate its Ethereum-heavy treasury strategy.
