Key Takeaways
- Tom Lee says BitMine will stop accumulating ETH once its holdings reach 5% of Ethereum’s supply.
- Its latest buying pace suggests the remaining purchases could take roughly six weeks, although no stopping date has been announced.
- Lee’s $10,000 forecast also faces a demand test as Ethereum advances its Glamsterdam upgrade.
Tom Lee’s $10,000 Ethereum forecast is approaching a test involving his own company as BitMine’s weekly buying campaign could soon end.
The world’s largest corporate Ethereum treasury is nearing its ownership target, leaving Ethereum facing the withdrawal of a consistent buyer while Lee argues that much higher prices lie ahead.
BitMine Nears the End of Its Ethereum Buying Spree
Speaking at TOKEN2049 in Singapore on Oct. 7, BitMine chairman Lee said the company would stop accumulating Ethereum after reaching 5% of the token’s supply.
The firm would then be “done stacking,” the Ethereum bull said.
BitMine’s Oct. 5 holdings update disclosed 6,016,414 ETH, equivalent to approximately 4.9% of the 122.1 million supply cited by the company.
Using that supply figure, the 5% threshold would be approximately 6.105 million ETH, leaving only around 88,586 tokens to acquire.
At the latest weekly pace, closing that gap could take just under six weeks.
However, Lee’s rounded estimate of another 100,000 ETH would take roughly six and a half weeks.
BitMine’s Removal of Demand
The immediate issue for Ethereum is the potential loss of recurring purchases.
BitMine ending its buying campaign would remove a regular source of demand for Ethereum, potentially putting greater pressure on other investors to sustain a rally.
The company would still retain a substantial financial stake in Ethereum’s success through its holdings and staking operations.
In its latest holdings update, BitMine disclosed 5,067,309 staked ETH, approximately 84% of its treasury. It projected annualized staking revenue of $363 million.
That provides a potential income stream after the buying campaign ends, although the dollar value of those rewards remains exposed to Ethereum’s price.
Lee’s $10,000 Call—and His Missed Target
As CCN previously reported, Lee’s five-figure forecast rests on Ethereum benefiting from another crypto expansion, financial tokenization, and AI-related activity.
Asked about prices in 2027 or 2028 during a Bankless interview, he said:
“I think Ethereum could easily be over $10,000 in that time frame.”
Using $2,573 as a reference price, reaching $10,000 would require approximately 289% upside.
In November 2025, Lee previously predicted that ETH could rebound to $7,000–$9,000 by the end of January 2026, which failed to materialize.
Glamsterdam Advances Ethereum’s Capacity Case
Ethereum’s development also offers a separate obstacle to the buying slowdown.
CCN previously covered preparations for Glamsterdam’s Oct. 6 Sepolia activation, including changes intended to support greater processing capacity.
Following activation, a testnet gas limit of around 200 million was reported, compared with roughly 60 million previously.
The Ethereum Foundation says Glamsterdam changes block production and introduces access lists that help software retrieve data and validate transactions more efficiently.
These changes strengthen Ethereum’s capacity to handle activity, but turning that capacity into sustained usage and demand for ETH remains the commercial test.
The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as, financial advice. We do not make any warranties regarding the completeness, reliability, or accuracy of this information. All investments involve risk, and past performance does not guarantee future results. We recommend consulting a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
