Gate News, March 24 — BitMine Chairman Tom Lee stated that Ethereum (ETH) may be in the final stages of a small crypto winter. Lee emphasized that over the past three weeks, the company has continuously increased its ETH purchases, reaching 65,341 coins last week, well above the previous weekly average of 45,000 to 50,000.
Lee pointed out that since the outbreak of the Iran conflict, Ethereum has risen about 18%, outperforming the stock market by 2,450 basis points, while gold has fallen over 15% during the same period. He believes that amid geopolitical tensions, Ethereum is demonstrating “good wartime value storage” characteristics, gradually becoming a new safe-haven asset.
Regarding regulation, Lee is optimistic about the progress of the Clarity Act in Congress, with Polymarket predicting a greater than 68% chance of passing by the end of the year. He noted that if the bill passes smoothly, it could serve as a catalyst for improving Ethereum’s fundamentals and support the end of the crypto winter.
BitMine is the world’s largest ETH institutional holder, currently holding 4.66 million ETH, about 3.86% of the total supply. Additionally, the company owns 196 Bitcoin, $200 million worth of Beast Industries shares, $95 million of Eightco Holdings shares, and approximately $1.1 billion in cash, with total assets around $11 billion.
As of press time, Ethereum is trading at $2,138, up 3.6% in the past 24 hours. The market has been briefly affected by news of Trump suspending plans to attack Iran’s energy facilities, but Iran has raised objections to the negotiations, leaving uncertainty about whether geopolitical factors can sustain this rally. Lee believes that as the ETH market gradually stabilizes, bullish investors may find new opportunities, but the end of the winter also depends on changes in macro politics and regulation.