Billionaire Peter Thiel Takes 9% Stake in Ethereum Treasury Startup

Crypto Reporter

Shalini Nagarajan

Crypto Reporter

Shalini Nagarajan

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Shalini is a crypto reporter who provides in-depth reports on daily developments and regulatory shifts in the cryptocurrency sector.

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Last updated: 

July 16, 2025

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Peter Thiel has taken a major position in BitMine Immersion Technologies, acquiring a 9.1% stake in the firm as it pivots toward becoming a leading Ethereum treasury.

The move, disclosed in a recent US SEC filing, signals a growing institutional appetite for Ethereum as a strategic asset.

Thiel, best known as a co-founder of PayPal and Palantir, made the investment through Founders Fund Growth II Management.

The filing shows Thiel’s entities now control approximately 5.09m shares of BitMine, a Nasdaq-listed company trading under the ticker BMNR. Based on the company’s most recent share count, that translates to a 9.1% ownership stake.

From Mining to Ethereum Treasury

BitMine, which once focused on Bitcoin mining, has shifted its strategy under CEO Jonathan Bates and newly appointed chairman Tom Lee. The company now holds more than 163,000 ETH, currently valued at around $500m, making it one of the largest Ethereum treasuries among public firms.

Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat Global Advisors, has long championed Ethereum’s role in decentralized finance, stablecoins, and smart contract applications. He recently described the asset as “on the brink of a major breakout,” driven by increasing adoption across real-world payment systems and staking protocols.

Thiel’s Investment Adds Credibility to BitMine’s Ethereum Strategy

The private placement that brought Thiel on board closed on July 9. It raised $250m. In addition, it attracted heavyweight backing from Pantera Capital, Galaxy Digital and Kraken. Together, these investments signal strong crypto-native support for BitMine’s strategic shift.

The SEC filing clarifies that Thiel’s investment is passive, with no current plans to influence control of the company. All voting and dispositive powers are shared among the Delaware-registered entities involved in the purchase.

Still, Thiel’s involvement carries symbolic weight. Known for making early bets on paradigm-shifting technologies, his backing of BitMine places Ethereum in the same camp as other transformational ventures he’s supported, from Facebook to SpaceX. It also aligns him closely with Lee’s vision of Ethereum as the digital infrastructure for the next financial era.

The timing is notable. Earlier this month, Thiel joined a consortium of tech billionaires backing Erebor, a new US bank aimed at filling the gap left by Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. The initiative is designed to support startups and crypto firms with more reliable access to capital.