The Bitcoin Foundation editorial team examined what is happening in the large corporate segment and why Strategy and BitMine unexpectedly halted BTC▼$64,320.00 and ETH▼$1,741.32 purchases when prices are lower.
Leading companies with large crypto reserves—Michael Saylor’s Strategy and Tom Lee’s BitMine—did not conduct their regular bitcoin and ether purchases last week. This is the first such pause for Strategy since late March.
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What Other Participants Bought
According to Lookonchain data, between May 18 and May 24, public companies Strive, The Smarter Web Company, DDC Enterprise, and Hyperscale Data acquired a total of 612 BTC worth approximately $47.5M. As of May 26, these four companies together held 21,525 BTC values at roughly $1.67B.
Strategy, as Michael Saylor himself reported, was buying back bonds instead of purchasing bitcoin (BTC). In mid-May, the company announced plans to buy back $1.38B in convertible bonds. Previously, this instrument was used to raise capital for large crypto purchases.
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Reasons for the Pause?
Saylor had previously been categorically against selling bitcoin. However, in recent interviews, he has acknowledged the possibility of partially selling assets to cover obligations. Strategy’s balance sheet currently holds 843,738 BTC worth approximately $64.6B at current prices.
BitMine also has not reported any ether purchases. Its last reserve addition occurred on May 17. As of May 26, the company holds 5.28 million ETH worth approximately $11.05B. This represents 4.37% of Ethereum’s (ETH) total supply.
Tom Lee previously stated that the company would slow its accumulation pace because it has already reached 4% of ETH supply. The goal is to reach 5% within five years, then focus on staking and developing other areas.
Broader Crypto Market Outlook
Despite the pause, Strategy and BitMine remain the largest corporate holders of cryptocurrencies. Analysts note that such pauses may be related to balance sheet optimization and preparation for new phases of their strategies. The market continues to watch their next moves.
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