BitMine appoints new CEO amid Ether buying spree

BitMine Immersion Technologies has overhauled its leadership as it continues to amass one of the largest Ether treasuries across publicly traded companies.

In a Friday notice, BitMine announced that Chi Tsang would succeed Jonathan Bates as the company’s CEO, effective immediately. The Ether (ETH) treasury company reported holding more than 3.5 million tokens as of Monday, bringing its valuation to more than $11 billion at a price of $3,175. 

“With its substantial Ethereum holdings and credibility with both Wall Street and the Ethereum ecosystem, BitMine is positioned to become a leading financial institution,” said Tsang.

The company announcement included the appointment of three independent board members. Initially launched as a cryptocurrency mining company and led by Chairman Tom Lee, BitMine has become the largest Ethereum treasury company, standing in contrast to Michael Saylor’s Strategy as the largest Bitcoin (BTC) holder.   

Related: ETH long-term holders dump 45K Ether per day: Is a price drop to $2.5K next?

ARK Invest, the asset management company founded by Cathie Wood, reported on Nov. 7 that it had purchased about $2 million worth of BitMine shares, increasing its ETFs’ exposure to Ether.

The share price of BitMine’s stock on the New York Stock Exchange has dropped about 35% in the previous 30 days, reaching $34.43 at the time of publication.

Crypto treasury strategies on the horizon?

Although BitMine and Strategy are leading the pack with their Ether and Bitcoin treasuries, respectively, other companies have adopted similar investment strategies for various digital assets. 

Forward Industries holds the largest position on Solana (SOL), with an estimated 6.82 million tokens as of Tuesday. Leap Therapeutics, which recently rebranded to Cypherpunk Technologies, announced the adoption of a Zcash (ZEC) treasury strategy on Wednesday, purchasing $50 million worth of the privacy-focused blockchain’s native tokens.