How Many ETH Has Tom Lee’s BitMine Bought From Ethereum Foundation?

Tom Lee’s BitMine has bought 15,000 ETH from the Ethereum Foundation so far in 2026 through two over-the-counter transactions worth about $34.08 million. The direct sales came as the Tom Lee-chaired company accelerated its Ethereum treasury strategy and pushed its total holdings above 5 million ETH.

The latest transaction involved 10,000 ETH sold by the Ethereum Foundation to BitMine on April 24 at an average price of $2,387 per token. That sale raised about $23.87 million. It followed an earlier March deal in which the Foundation sold 5,000 ETH to BitMine at an average price of $2,042.96, generating about $10.21 million.

Taken together, the two transactions answer the main question around the relationship between the Ethereum Foundation and BitMine this year. So far, BitMine has acquired 15,000 ETH directly from the Foundation, while most of its broader Ethereum accumulation has come from other sources.

That figure has drawn fresh attention after BitMine said its total Ethereum holdings had reached 5,078,386 ETH as of April 26. The company also said it bought 101,901 ETH last week alone, marking its largest weekly purchase since December. The update placed BitMine above 4.2% of Ethereum’s total circulating supply and moved it closer to its stated goal of reaching 5%.

Latest OTC Deal Puts Focus on Ethereum Foundation Sales

The Ethereum Foundation’s latest 10,000 ETH sale to BitMine was disclosed as part of its treasury activity, not as a change in its view on Ethereum. The sale was completed off-exchange, which allowed the Foundation to raise funds without placing the full order on the public market.

The March and April transactions now stand as the only confirmed Ethereum Foundation sales to BitMine this year. Their combined value of roughly $34.08 million remains small compared with BitMine’s full Ethereum position, but the deals are notable because they involved a direct transfer from one of the ecosystem’s largest long-term ETH holders to one of its fastest-growing corporate buyers.

The Foundation has continued to manage its treasury under the policy framework it adopted in 2025. That approach is designed to keep enough reserves to fund operations while allowing the organization to continue supporting research, grants, protocol development, and ecosystem work. In practice, that means ETH sales remain part of its operating model when needed.

At the same time, the Foundation has also expanded staking activity. It has been increasing the amount of ETH committed to staking as a way to generate treasury yield, but the two BitMine deals show that staking has not replaced asset sales as a funding source.

Tom Lee’s BitMine Crosses 5 million ETH

BitMine’s own numbers put the Foundation transactions into context. With more than 5.07 million ETH now on its balance sheet, the 15,000 ETH bought from the Ethereum Foundation represents less than 0.3% of the company’s total holdings.

That means the Foundation has been a visible seller to BitMine, but not a defining one. Most of BitMine’s ETH accumulation has happened elsewhere, even though the Foundation deals stand out because they were direct, large, and clearly disclosed.

The company has said its latest weekly purchase of 101,901 ETH was its biggest since December. That continued a buying pace that has turned BitMine into one of the largest known corporate Ethereum holders in the market. The company has tied that strategy to a broader view that ETH can serve both as a treasury asset and as productive collateral within blockchain-based finance.

BitMine also said it has staked more than 3.7 million ETH. That means a large share of its holdings is already being put to work on the network rather than remaining idle in treasury reserves. The company has framed that as part of a broader capital allocation strategy around Ethereum.