Tom Lee Expects Corporate Treasuries to Double Ethereum Supply Share to 15%

Tom Lee, chairman of BitMine, anticipates that digital asset treasury companies will drive the next major price expansion in Ethereum. According to Lee, publicly listed firms holding Ether on their balance sheets already control roughly 7% of the asset's total supply, a figure he expects to double to approximately 15% during the ongoing bull cycle. He also responded to Arthur Hayes's call for $10,000 Ether by the end of 2026, stating that he expects the token to trade substantially higher than that within the next 12 months.

Lee divided treasury firms into those trading above and below net asset value. When trading at a premium to their holdings, these companies can issue new shares to purchase additional cryptocurrency, thereby absorbing available market float. He noted that Ethereum treasury firms hold a larger proportion of their asset's supply than similar vehicles for Bitcoin or Solana, citing a single firm holding about 14% of Hyperliquid's token supply as an analogous model.

BitMine itself has accumulated over 6 million Ether over a 15-month span, representing nearly 5% of the total circulating supply. Lee outlined three strategic priorities for the company: maintaining maximum Ether exposure, conducting share buybacks—such as a $350 million repurchase completed in July—and pursuing investments in tokenization, artificial intelligence, and computing.

Addressing institutional involvement, Lee observed that most institutional investors remain unallocated to digital assets. While advisory firms recommend allocations between 2% and 10%, he estimated that firms covered by Fundstrat hold only 2% to 5%, noting that Ether gained roughly 65% in the third quarter while the S&P 500 remained largely flat.