Ethereum treasury giant offers 9.5% payout as BitMine paper losses top $8.5 billion
Thomas Lee’s BitMine is turning to the preferred-stock market to raise fresh capital for its Ethereum strategy, offering investors a 9.5% annual payout.
On June 3, the company revealed plans to sell 3 million shares of 9.50% Series A perpetual preferred stock with a $100 stated amount, creating a potential $300 million raise.
The shares are expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BMNP if the listing is approved. Moelis & Company and Cantor are serving as joint lead bookrunners.
If sold in full, the offering would add about $28.5 million in annual dividend obligations, paid weekly when declared by BitMine’s board.
The sale comes as the Ethereum treasury company faces a sharper test of the corporate crypto model. Due to current market conditions, BitMine’s unrealized losses on ETH have exceeded $8 billion after ETH’s decline pushed the asset well below the company’s average purchase price.
Still, this move will deepen the link between the firm’s balance sheet, its staking operation, and the public-market investors being asked to finance its next stage of accumulation.
A payout built around Ethereum yield
BitMine said proceeds from the offering may be used for general corporate purposes, including additional purchases of ETH and other digital assets, expansion of its staking and validator infrastructure, working capital, Ethereum-related strategic investments, and repurchases of its common stock.
That broad use of proceeds makes the offering more than a balance-sheet repair. It could allow BitMine to keep accumulating ETH while market prices remain weak, reinforcing the company’s role as the largest public Ethereum treasury firm.
Over the past year, the company has built its ETH portfolio position through aggressive purchases and currently holds more than 5.3 million tokens. This represents around 4.5% of ETH’s circulating supply.
Notably, a large share of that stack is staked, allowing BitMine to earn protocol rewards while it holds the tokens.
Chairman Thomas Lee has argued that those staking rewards give Ethereum treasury firms an advantage over Bitcoin-focused vehicles. Unlike Bitcoin, ETH can produce yield through staking, allowing a company to earn returns without selling the underlying asset.
That distinction is central to BitMine’s new preferred stock. At a 9.5% coupon, the full $300 million offering would cost roughly $548,000 a week in dividends.
BitMine has said its annualized staking revenue is running in the hundreds of millions of dollars, suggesting the preferred payout is small relative to the income its staked ETH could generate under ordinary market conditions.
Moreover, the broader Ethereum treasury sector is already moving in that direction. Staking accounted for 60% of disclosed revenue across publicly listed ETH treasury firms in 2025, according to a study from staking provider Everstake.
The report said the figure was drawn from companies that separately broke out staking-related income, showing how active deployment has become a larger part of the public ETH treasury model.
That revenue mix helps explain why BitMine is leaning on Ethereum’s yield profile at the same time it is asking investors to accept a fixed 9.5% payout.
The company is not merely holding ETH as a treasury reserve. It is trying to convert that reserve into a recurring income base that can support capital-market financing.
However, the company’s filing also shows why the structure is not risk-free.
BitMine does not pledge a dedicated pool of staking income to the preferred shares. Instead, the filing says dividends may be funded through available cash, ETH yield activity, securities sales, future financing, or other sources.
Meanwhile, the firm also warns that staking income may not be sufficient and that staked ETH may not be immediately available for withdrawal or sale during periods of stress.
That caveat is central to the transaction because the preferred stock turns part of BitMine’s Ethereum bet into a recurring cash obligation.
The Strategy’s STRC comparison has limits
BitMine’s move closely resembles the financing model used by Strategy, Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin treasury company, which has repeatedly tapped preferred shares and other securities to fund crypto accumulation and manage its capital structure.
Both companies are using public-market instruments to transform investor demand for yield into balance-sheet capacity for digital-asset purchases. Both have sought to create securities that appeal to investors who may want exposure to a crypto treasury without directly owning the underlying token.
Both are also operating in a market where the value of their main asset can change sharply before the cash obligation attached to the security comes due.
However, this comparison has limits.
Strategy’s STRC preferred is a variable-rate product designed to help keep the shares trading near their $100 stated amount. Its dividend rate can be adjusted monthly, giving Strategy a tool to respond if market pricing drifts away from par.
BitMine’s Series A preferred is simpler in one respect and stricter in another. It carries a fixed 9.5% coupon, paid weekly in arrears when declared, rather than a variable rate that can be reset to influence the trading price.
If dividends are not paid, however, they accumulate and compound weekly. The rate on unpaid dividends can step up over time, capped at 15% annually.
| Feature | STRC | BitMine Series A |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Strategy, Bitcoin treasury | BitMine, Ethereum treasury |
| Security type | Perpetual preferred | Perpetual preferred |
| Dividend | Variable, currently 11.50% | Fixed 9.50% |
| Payment cadence | Monthly cash | Weekly cash, if declared |
| Purpose | General corporate purposes, including Bitcoin purchases | General corporate purposes, including ETH/digital assets and staking infrastructure |
| Par/stated amount | $100 | $100 |
| Market-stabilizing feature | Dividend adjusted to keep price near $100 | Liquidation preference adjusts using market-price formula, but no variable dividend targeting par |
| Redemption | STRC callable at $101 or higher, plus unpaid dividends | BitMine callable at 110% in first 18 months, 105% from 18 months to three years, then 100%, plus unpaid dividends |
The preferred shares also include a liquidation preference that begins at $100 and adjusts based on a market-price formula, while never falling below $100.
BitMine can redeem the shares at 110% of the stated amount during the first 18 months, 105% from 18 months to three years, and 100% after three years, plus accumulated and unpaid dividends. Holders would also have repurchase rights if certain fundamental changes occur.
Those terms give BitMine flexibility, but they also show the price of raising capital in a weaker crypto market. A 9.5% payout is high enough to draw attention from income investors, but it also reflects the premium demanded from a company whose main asset base is tied to ETH.
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