Retail investors in South Korea continue to invest in Ether-accumulating BitMine Immersion Technologies Inc., despite the U.S.-listed stock experiencing an over 80% decline from its peak in July. This has made it one of the most notable examples of speculative interest persisting through a significant downturn.
By the end of 2025, BitMine is expected to be among the top foreign equities for South Koreans, second only to Alphabet Inc. in net purchases, based on data from the Korea Securities Depository as reported by Bloomberg.
This year alone, local investors have invested a net amount of $1.4 billion into the firm, remaining active even as shares fell approximately 82% from their high on July 3.
The stock’s surge began after BitMine shifted from bitcoin mining to creating an ether treasury, branding itself as a public entity aimed at accumulating ETH.
This strategy triggered a rally exceeding 3,000% by early July, elevating the company from obscurity to one of the most sought-after foreign stocks by South Koreans. The firm boasts backing from billionaire Peter Thiel and is led by Tom Lee, a Wall Street figure known for his optimistic views on crypto.
The investment trend isn’t limited to the primary shares. South Korean traders have also pursued heightened exposure through T-Rex’s 2X Long BitMine Daily Target ETF, a leveraged product aimed at achieving twice the stock’s daily performance.
Investors have injected $566 million into this ETF, which has dropped around 86% since its peak in September.
The attraction of BitMine lies in its financials. The company possesses approximately $12 billion worth of ether, making it the largest entity dedicated to ETH in terms of digital asset holdings, as per data from strategicethreserve.xyz.
Ether itself is down roughly 11% in 2025, based on CoinDesk market data, following a period where accumulating entities helped drive the token to a near-record value of $5,000 in August, before the upward momentum subsided.
For retail traders in Korea, the allure is less about stability and more about amplified returns. Ether treasury companies behave like magnified ETH proxies, incorporating equity risk on top of the inherent volatility of crypto.
This arrangement leads to significant gains during bullish trends and equally significant declines when market conditions shift, which helps to explain why the stock continues to attract South Korea’s high-risk investor demographic even after an 80% drop.
