Shares of leading crypto treasury companies, BitMine Immersion Technologies and Strategy, came under heavy pressure on Thursday, with both stocks tumbling close to 10% as a renewed sell-off in Bitcoin and Ethereum collided with rising macroeconomic uncertainty in the United States.
BitMine, which trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker BMNR, ended the session down nearly 10%, closing at $26.70. During the day, the stock fell as low as $26.02, a level not seen since early November last year. The decline followed a broader retreat across both equity and digital asset markets as investors reacted nervously to political and economic developments in Washington.
The pullback is notable given BitMine’s aggressive accumulation strategy. Earlier this week, the firm, led by market strategist Tom Lee, announced its largest Ethereum purchase of the year, acquiring $116 million worth of ETH. This followed three additional buys since January, totalling several hundred million dollars. As a result, BitMine now holds an estimated $11.9 billion in Ethereum, representing roughly 3.5% of the cryptocurrency’s total supply, based on data tracked by CoinGecko. Despite this sizeable treasury, the sharp decline in Ethereum’s price weighed heavily on investor sentiment.
Strategy, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, experienced a similar sell-off. Shares of the company, co-founded by executive chairman Michael Saylor, dropped nearly 10% to close at $143.19. The stock briefly touched an intraday low of $139.36, its weakest level since September 2024, according to market data. Earlier in the week, Strategy disclosed that it had added another $267 million worth of Bitcoin to its balance sheet. The firm now holds approximately 712,647 BTC, valued at around $60 billion at current market prices.
The weakness in crypto-linked stocks mirrored a broader downturn in digital assets. Bitcoin slid more than 5% on the day, falling to a two-month low before recovering slightly to trade above $84,000. Ethereum suffered even steeper losses, dropping more than 6% to around $2,800, underperforming Bitcoin amid heightened volatility.
Markets were unsettled by growing fears of a potential partial U.S. government shutdown after the Senate failed to advance a temporary funding measure. Lawmakers now face a tight deadline to reach an agreement, adding to uncertainty already fuelled by concerns over slowing growth and stretched valuations in technology stocks. A sharp drop in Microsoft shares also reignited debate around a possible AI-driven equity bubble.
Together, the combination of political gridlock, falling crypto prices, and broader risk-off sentiment proved enough to send shares of crypto treasury firms sharply lower, underscoring their increasing sensitivity to swings in both digital assets and traditional financial markets.
