Corporate Ethereum treasury companies are coming under increasing pressure as the crypto downturn deepens, with analysts warning the market is approaching a make-or-break phase for Ether’s investment case.
Bitmine Immersion Technologies, one of the biggest corporate holders of Ether (ETH), is sitting on a large unrealized loss as ETH trades well below the company’s average acquisition price, according to third-party tracker Bitminetracker. Some estimates put Bitmine’s paper losses in the roughly $8.8 billion range after Ether’s slide over recent months.
ETH’s price fell 60% during the past six months, dropping well below Bitmine’s average cost basis of $3,843 per token, according to Bitminetracker.
Crypto research outlet 10x Research said Monday that Ethereum is now trading near valuation and cost-basis levels that test whether the asset is simply in a cyclical downturn or entering a period of deeper, structural weakness.
“Investors must therefore assess carefully whether the asset is simply in a cyclical downturn or entering a phase of deeper structural impairment.”
Bitmine continues to buy ETH despite the mounting paper losses. Last week, Bitmine acquired 45,749 Ether at an average aggregate cost basis of $1,992 per ETH, signaling confidence from the world’s largest Ether treasury firm.
Large Wall Street participants are maintaining exposure to Bitmine despite the market downturn.
The top 11 Bitmine shareholders, including Morgan Stanley, Ark Investment Management, and asset manager BlackRock, have all increased their exposure to the treasury firm during the fourth quarter of 2025.
Bitmine’s stock price has fallen by around 59% over the past six months and traded at $19.68 in the pre-market on Monday, data from Google Finance shows.
Related: Wells Fargo sees ‘YOLO’ trade driving $150B into Bitcoin and risk assets
Corporate Ether holders face mounting losses amid downtrend
Other leading Ether treasury companies have also felt the pressure from the crypto market downturn.
SharpLink Gaming, the second-largest Ether treasury firm, is currently facing a $1.4 billion paper loss, as ETH trades below its average cost basis of $3,609, according to the company’s dashboard.
The Ether Machine, the third-largest corporate holder, is nearing $948 million in unrealized losses, as it acquired its 496,712 Ether holdings currently worth $950 million at an average price of $3,788, according to CoinGecko.
Related: Wall Street boosts Bitmine stakes as DeFi lenders buckle on liquidity: Finance Redefined
Smart money shorts ETH for $67 million as whales step up spot investments
The leading crypto traders by returns, tracked as “smart money,” continue betting on Ether’s decline.
Smart money traders added $1.48 million worth of short positions during the past 24 hours and were net short on Ether for $67 million, according to crypto intelligence platform Nansen.
However, whales, or large cryptocurrency investors, have increased their spot Ether accumulation pace by over sixfold during the past week, as this cohort acquired $44 million in spot ETH across 41 wallets, according to Nansen.
Fresh wallets created in the past 15 days have also bought $245 million worth of spot Ether tokens, signaling that new crypto market entrants are net buyers.
Magazine: Sharplink exec shocked by level of BTC and ETH ETF hodling — Joseph Chalom
