Tom Lee's BitMine Adds $139 Million in Ethereum Ahead of Preferred Share Trading Start

In brief BitMine added more than $139 million in Ethereum last week as it completed its preferred share offering. Preferred shares of BMNP will begin trading on Tuesday, and netted the firm nearly $274 million in proceeds for ETH accumulation and infrastructure building. Shares of BMNR have popped more than 6% as ETH has surged nearly 9% in the last 24 hours. Leading Ethereum treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies boosted its stake to more than 5.6 million ETH last week, adding 76,881 ETH or more than $139 million worth—along with nearly $274 million in proceeds from the completion of its preferred share offering, BMNP. BMNP is expected to begin trading on Tuesday with its 9.5% annual dividend rate paid out weekly. Proceeds are expected to be used to help acquire additional ETH, fund infrastructure buildouts, or buy back common shares of BitMine (BMNR). “The Series A Preferred Stock offering is good balance sheet diversification for BitMine,” Chairman Tom Lee said in a statement. “The Company's current projected annualized staking rewards of approximately $219 million provide recurring cash flow to support the dividends related to the Series A Preferred.” (Disclaimer: Lee is an investor in Dastan, the parent company of Decrypt.) As it stands, Lee’s firm is staking more than 4.7 million ETH, or around $8.5 billion worth of the second-largest crypto asset, via its Made in America Validator Network (MAVAN). If BitMine were to stake all of its 5.6 million ETH, the company anticipates that it would generate around $269 million in annualized staking revenue. Shares in the firm are trading more than 6.6% higher on Monday, recently changing hands around $17.18 as markets move higher following an announced ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.The share gain coincides with a significant rise in the price of its treasury asset as ETH has also surged nearly 9% in the last 24 hours, recently changing hands at $1,811.While the jump pushes BitMine’s treasury holdings to more than $10.1 billion, the top Ethereum treasury remains down significantly on its ETH purchases, which now hold unrealized losses of nearly $9 billion according to data from DropsTab.Even as ETH has risen on Monday, it remains more than 63% off its all-time high of $4,946 set last August.Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.