Tom Lee from Fundstrat has reiterated that the excitement around digital asset treasuries may be winding down, yet he remains optimistic about Ether, having acquired $1.5 billion worth since the market downturn.
BitMine Immersion Technologies has accumulated a total of 379,271 Ether (ETH), valued at nearly $1.5 billion, following the major crypto market liquidation last weekend.
These purchases were made in three separate transactions: 202,037 ETH after the weekend drop, 104,336 ETH on Thursday, and 72,898 ETH on Saturday, according to on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence and ‘BMNR Bullz’, which monitors the firm’s acquisitions, although BitMine has yet to officially confirm this information.
BitMine is recognized as the largest Ether treasury company globally, holding over 3 million ETH, equating to 2.5% of the total supply, valued at $11.7 billion. The company is already halfway to its target of 5% and began accumulating assets in early July, when ETH was around the $2,500 mark.
“Ethereum could surpass Bitcoin just as Wall Street and equities surpassed gold after ’71,” Lee remarked to ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood on Thursday, expressing his ongoing bullish view on the asset.
Is the DAT bubble bursting?
The persistent and aggressive accumulation of Ether continues despite Lee’s belief that the digital asset treasury bubble may have burst.
Lee pointed out that many digital asset treasuries (DATs) are trading below their net asset value (NAV), which reflects the value of their underlying crypto assets. “If that’s not already a bubble burst… How would that bubble burst?” he told Fortune on Thursday.
Related: NAV Collapse Creates Rare Opportunity in Bitcoin Treasurys — 10x Research
Research firm 10x Research also noted on Saturday that significant DATs like Metaplanet and Strategy were trading close to or below their NAVs.
However, not all news is negative, as DATs with strong capital foundations and savvy management teams “may still yield meaningful alpha,” they commented.
Huobi founder Li Lin is also looking to capture some of that alpha and has reportedly raised around $1 billion as part of a strategy to invest in an Ether treasury.
Gold envy affecting crypto
Lee told CNBC on Friday after trading hours that investors were still “licking their wounds” from the recent leverage flush, while also feeling some “gold envy,” as the commodity has performed exceptionally well this year.
“This is not the peak of the crypto cycle, but leveraged longs in crypto are at record lows, suggesting we’re at the bottom and are working our way back up.”
Currently, crypto markets are down 15% from their all-time high on October 7, whereas gold prices have decreased nearly 3% from their peak on Thursday.
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