Bitmine nears 5% ETH goal in under a year — Tom Lee signals slowdown, $4B buyback, and staking pivot!

Bitmine Chairman Tom Lee revealed Thursday at Consensus 2026 in Miami that the firm may begin slowing its ether purchases after reaching 4.29% of the ETH supply — a milestone it originally expected to take five years but is now just six weeks away from hitting at its current buying pace of 100,000 ETH per week.

The firm already holds over 5.1 million ETH worth roughly $11.9 billion, with 85% of those holdings staked and generating annualized staking revenue exceeding $300 million — approximately $1 million per day. That income stream has kept Bitmine profitable through volatile markets without forcing any liquidation of holdings.

Once the 5% accumulation target is reached, Lee said the focus shifts to capital allocation: a recently announced $4 billion share repurchase program and further expansion of MAVAN, its institutional staking platform currently handling around $14 billion in…