Bitcoin Updates: Institutional Hesitation Puts a Pause on Major Crypto Players’ Bitcoin and Ether Purchases
- Public companies have halted Bitcoin/Ether buying since October's $19B crypto crash, signaling waning short-term confidence as DAT firms reduced purchases to year-low levels. - BitMine Immersion remains a rare ETH buyer, spending $1.9B to acquire 483,000 ETH post-crash, but slowing purchases could increase market volatility according to Coinbase's Duong. - Investors now favor utility-backed crypto projects over speculative altcoins, with Bitget CEO declaring the 2025 "altseason" over due to poor risk-rew
Publicly traded firms that have invested in
The market crash on October 10–11 wiped out close to $19 billion in leveraged positions, leading to widespread liquidations and diminishing speculative enthusiasm. BitMine Immersion Technologies, one of the few companies that continued to buy Ether (ETH) during the slump, has spent more than $1.9 billion to purchase almost 483,000 ETH since the downturn. Still, Duong cautioned that if BitMine reduces its buying activity, the "visible corporate demand" for crypto could disappear, increasing the market's exposure to price swings, the report stated.
The overall crypto sector has shifted its focus to fundamentals, as investors move away from speculative altcoins in favor of projects with practical use cases. Bitget CEO Gracy Chen announced that the anticipated 2025 "altseason"—a period of strong altcoin performance—has effectively ended, pointing to a diminished risk-reward ratio for trading smaller tokens. She observed a rising interest in projects with revenue-generating models, such as real-world asset platforms and payment systems, marking a shift away from the highly speculative "casino era," according to
At the same time, global political events have added new complexities. The recent easing of trade tensions between the U.S. and China, including a framework to prevent 100% tariffs on Chinese imports, has renewed risk appetite in crypto markets. Experts believe this could channel funds back into riskier assets like Bitcoin, with blockchain data indicating a recovery in large transactions and stablecoin flows, as detailed in
Nonetheless, institutions remain wary. The Digital Asset Treasury approach, once a key driver of crypto's bull run, is now under scrutiny, as most recent DAT token transactions have been in-kind exchanges rather than driven by new demand. BitMine CEO Thomas Lee highlighted the company's progress toward owning 5% of ETH's total supply, but admitted that the market is still recovering from the October deleveraging. With ETH open interest back to pre-crash levels, the outlook for a lasting rebound is still unclear, according to
Political actions, such as President Trump's pardon of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, have also brought renewed optimism. This decision, seen as a win for crypto-friendly policies, has lifted the prices of Bitcoin,
Amid these shifting dynamics, the lack of major DAT buyers and ongoing leverage risks underscore the market's fragility. Duong advised investors to maintain a "defensive stance" in the near term, emphasizing that the sector's ability to recover will hinge on a return of institutional interest and clearer regulatory guidance to support long-term expansion, the Cointelegraph report concluded.
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Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
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