Bitcoin Faces $8.8B Paper Loss, Threatens ‘Cyclical Collapse’ For Ether
Corporate Ether treasuries are coming under pressure as the crypto crash deepens, with analysts warning the market is nearing a make-or-break point for Ether's investment case.
Bitmine Immersion Technologies, one of the largest corporate owners of Ether (ETH), is sitting on a modest loss as ETH trades well below the company's average purchase price, according to third-party tracker Bitminetracker. Some estimates put Bitmine's paper losses at $8.8 billion after Ether's slide in recent months.
ETH's price has fallen 60% in the past six months, falling well below Bitmine's average cost base of $3,843, Bitminetracker data shows.
Crypto research outlet 10x Research said Monday that Ether is now trading near valuation and price-specific levels that test whether the asset is in a cyclical downturn or entering deeper structural weakness.
“Therefore, investors should carefully consider whether the asset is simply in a cyclical downturn or entering a phase of deep structural impairment.”
Bitmine continues to buy ETH despite paper losses. Last week Bitmin gained 45,749 Ether at an average price of $1,992 per ETH, showing confidence in the world's largest Ether treasury.
Big Wall Street participants are maintaining exposure to Bitmine even as the market declines.
The top 11 bitcoin shareholders, including Morgan Stanley, Arch Investment Management and asset manager BlackRock, all increased their exposure to the company in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Bitmine's share price has fallen 59% in the past six months and was trading at $19.68 in premarket trading on Monday, according to Google Finance data.
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Corporate Ether holders face increasing losses in a downtrend.
Other leading Ether treasury companies have also felt pressure from the crypto market crash.
Sharplink Gaming, the second largest Ether treasury firm, is currently facing $1.4 billion in paper losses, as ETH trades below its average cost of $3,609, according to the company's dashboard.
According to CoinGecko, Ether Machine, the third largest corporate owner, currently holds 496,712 Ether holdings of $950 million at an average price of $3,788, making it an unlikely loss of $948 million.
Related: Wall Street Boosts Bitmine Shares as DeFi Lenders Stuck on Liquidity: Finance Redefined
Smart funds short ETH by $67 million as whales invest in space
The major crypto traders, watched as “smart money”, continue to bet on the fall of Ether.
Smart money traders added $1.48 million worth of short positions in the past 24 hours and were short $67 million in Ether, according to crypto intelligence platform Nansen.
Still, whales, or large cryptocurrency investors, have seen a six-fold increase in Ether holdings in the past week, with the group earning $44 million in spot ETH across 41 wallets, Nansen said.
Fresh wallets created in the last 15 days have purchased $245 million worth of SpotEther tokens, which may indicate that new entrants to the crypto market are net buyers.
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