‘A feature, not a bug’: BitMine chair Tom Lee pushes back on claims unrealized ETH treasury losses will cap prices

BitMine chairman Tom Lee has rejected criticism that the firm’s large unrealized losses on its ETH holdings will weigh on future ether prices, arguing that such drawdowns are an expected part of an Ethereum treasury strategy during market downturns.

The response came after online commentary claimed that BitMine Immersion Technologies (Nasdaq: BMNR) was sitting on roughly $6.6 billion in unrealized losses and that its accumulated ether would eventually be sold, creating a ceiling on prices. One post described Lee as “exit liquidity” for early ether holders.

Ether prices have dipped nearly 30% in the last month, The Block’s price page shows. BitMine shares have similarly slumped, down roughly 30% as well over the same period.

“These tweets miss the point of an Ethereum treasury,” Lee wrote in response, saying BitMine is designed to track the price of ether and outperform over the full market cycle.

With crypto prices under pressure, he said, unrealized losses on ETH holdings are “not a bug, but a feature,” likening the situation to index exchange-traded funds that post losses during broad market declines. BitMine has built the largest known corporate Ethereum treasury, holding about 4.285 million ETH — roughly 3.5% of the circulating supply — according to company disclosures and The Block’s data.

mNAV model

The market value of those holdings peaked near $14 billion in late 2025 and early 2026, before sliding to below $10 billion as ether prices retreated amid a broader market selloff. The drawdown has reignited debate around Ethereum treasury companies and their impact on market dynamics. Critics argue that large treasuries could become sources of future selling pressure, while proponents frame them as long-term, index-like exposure vehicles rather than trading positions.

According to The Block’s data, Ethereum treasury companies have increasingly traded at discounts to their net asset value during the downturn. In other words, share issuance from ETH-focused corporate treasuries is currently constrained. Conversely, share dilution is also limited during fragile market periods.

When a company’s market capitalization falls below the value of its crypto holdings — a metric often referred to as mNAV — issuing new shares to fund additional asset purchases becomes less accretive, reducing the incentive to raise equity at depressed prices.

Supporters of the model argue that this acts as a natural circuit breaker, preserving “dry powder” for future cycles rather than forcing asset sales or dilutive issuance during drawdowns.

Despite scrutiny and harsh market conditions, BitMine has continued to add to its ether position. The firm recently deepened its staking stack and added nearly 42,000 ETH to its treasury.

The company has also attracted institutional attention, with Ark Invest increasing its exposure to BitMine shares during the recent market slump.

Lee has repeatedly described Ethereum as foundational to the future of finance, arguing that short-term price volatility does not undermine the long-term thesis behind holding ETH at scale. “Bottom line: Ethereum is the future of finance,” he wrote.

BitMine is not alone in navigating a treasury drawdown. Strategy, the largest corporate digital asset treasury holder among public firms, has also seen its Bitcoin position briefly slip into unrealized losses during the recent market pullback. The company’s roughly 713,000 BTC stash hovered near breakeven when bitcoin dipped below the mid-$70,000 range — marking its first sustained period underwater in years. However, much like BitMine, Strategy has so far continued to add to its holdings.

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