Key facts
- Bitcoin miners are once again trading like leveraged bets on BTC, shifting focus from AI investors.
- Strive and Strategy added thousands of Bitcoin to their corporate treasuries in late August.
- A group of 21 major financial institutions plans to develop and issue stablecoins for wholesale and retail markets.
- Bitmine has extended its Ether buying streak to 65 consecutive weeks, now holding 4.9% of the circulating supply.
- Ether, Bitcoin, and Solana have been the best-performing major assets since June 30.
The recent rally in Bitcoin has shifted corporate focus back towards direct cryptocurrency exposure, particularly among mining companies and investment firms. This marks a departure from a trend where many crypto-focused businesses were pivoting to artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure to diversify their revenue streams during the crypto downturn.
Bitcoin miners saw their stock prices surge by as much as 67% in August, outperforming many AI-linked infrastructure stocks. This performance suggests investors are once again rewarding direct Bitcoin exposure, despite ongoing risks associated with the high costs of AI data center development. Catalysts for the rally included increased US Treasury liquidity, renewed optimism following a White House meeting on crypto, and a significant short squeeze that liquidated over $1.6 billion in positions.
In line with this trend, investment firms Strive and Strategy significantly increased their Bitcoin holdings in the final week of August. Strive purchased 1,800 BTC for approximately $143 million, bringing its total holdings to 23,156 BTC. Strategy acquired 4,603 BTC at an average price of $80,318, raising its holdings to over 845,000 BTC. These purchases coincided with a broader digital asset recovery that began on August 19, following the US Treasury's announcement of expanded bond buybacks.
Meanwhile, a consortium of 21 major financial institutions, including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Citi, is planning to establish a new company to develop and issue stablecoins. This venture aims to launch a US dollar-denominated stablecoin in the first half of 2027, targeting wholesale, institutional, and retail markets for cross-border payments and digital asset settlement. The initiative builds on a previous exploration by 10 banks and intends to comply with both US and EU regulations.
Separately, Bitmine has extended its Ether buying streak to 65 consecutive weeks, adding 53,501 ETH last week. This brings its total holdings to over 5.9 million ETH, representing 4.9% of Ethereum's circulating supply. Despite these accumulated holdings, Bitmine is currently sitting on approximately $5.1 billion in unrealized losses on its Ether portfolio, a result of sustained buying throughout the market downturn.