"This is not just an asset increase, but a reconstruction of the global financial system." On the stage of the 2025 Korea Blockchain Week, Tom Lee, chairman of BitMine and co-founder of Fundstrat, stunned the audience. This Wall Street legend, who accurately predicted the bottom of Bitcoin in 2018 and the bull market in 2021, has elevated Ethereum to the strategic height of "new infrastructure of the digital economy" for the first time.
1. Why is Ethereum called the "truly neutral chain"?
In an exclusive interview after the meeting, Tom Lee elaborated on his criteria: "Neutrality means not being controlled by a single country, company, or interest group. The network effect of Ethereum has already created a 'digital commons' characteristic, which is precisely the institutional foundation that Wall Street values most."
Three manifestations of neutrality:
Technical neutrality: Vitalik Buterin has long stepped back from daily development, maintained by thousands of developers worldwide
Geopolitical neutrality: Nodes are spread across the globe, no single country can shut down the network alone
Capital neutrality: Holding addresses are highly decentralized, with the top ten addresses accounting for less than 15%
Notably, the (Digital Asset Assessment Report) released by the US Treasury in June 2025 first recognized Ethereum as meeting the "important financial infrastructure" standards, clearing the last obstacle for large-scale institutional entry.
II. The institution's entry is ongoing: The truth revealed by data
According to unpublished data we obtained, institutional allocation is accelerating:
ETF capital flows:
The US spot ETH ETF has seen a net inflow of over $5 billion for three consecutive months
BlackRock's IBIT Ethereum holdings exceed 800,000 ETH
Fidelity's FETH fund sees daily inflows of $120 million
Tokenized asset explosion:
The scale of tokenization of US Treasury bonds has surpassed $50 billion, with 90% based on Ethereum
Blackstone Group tokenizes $3 billion in real estate assets on-chain
JPMorgan launches enterprise-level tokenization solutions, with Ethereum as the first choice
An Ernst & Young and Coinbase joint investigation report shows that 86% of institutional investors have allocated digital assets, with Ethereum-related products accounting for as much as 63%. "This is just the early stage," Tom Lee emphasized, "large pension funds have just started to build positions."
III. BitMine's astonishing layout: controlling 2% of Ethereum's supply
The most shocking thing is the holding data from BitMine, led by Tom Lee himself. According to the latest financial report:
Holds 240,000 ETH, valued at over $10 billion
Account for 2.01% of Ethereum's total circulation
Become the world's largest enterprise-level Ethereum reserve vault
"This is not just an investment," Tom Lee explained, "we are building a complete Ethereum economic ecosystem." Recent actions of BitMine include:
Collaborate with Texas to build a 300 MW mining data center
Acquire Ethereum Layer 2 solution Arbitrum ecosystem projects
Launch institutional-grade staking services with an annual yield of 4.2%
Industry insiders analyze that BitMine's holding scale has reached a level "too big to fail," and its movements will become an important market barometer.
IV. The underlying logic of price predictions: It's not just a numbers game
Ethereum prediction breakdown:
Conservative target: $10,000-$12,000 (based on a current price-to-earnings ratio of 25 times)
Optimistic target: $12,000-$15,000 (considering ecological explosive growth)
Implementation path: Daily inflow of $100 million into ETFs + staking rate exceeds 40%
Bitcoin is also optimistic:
End-of-year target: $200,000-$250,000
Driving factors: Supply tightness post-halving + sovereign fund allocation
Tom Lee specifically pointed out key technical indicators:
Ethereum NVT ratio (Network Value to Transaction Volume ratio) is at a historical low
MVRV (Market Value to Realized Value ratio) shows institutions are in the accumulation phase
The number of active addresses on-chain has increased by 300% year-on-year
"Most importantly," he pointed to the real-time data screen and said, "Gas fees have dropped to 0.3% of transaction volume, marking the beginning of large-scale implementation of L2 solutions."
V. Policy tailwind: The strategic shift of the Trump administration
Internal documents from the White House's Digital Asset Working Group in 2025 show that the US is adjusting its cryptocurrency strategy:
Position Ethereum as "key financial infrastructure"
Approval of the first national digital bond issuance platform
The Treasury is considering including Ethereum in foreign exchange reserve allocation
"Policymakers finally understand," Tom Lee analyzed, "it's better to guide than to fight against. Ethereum's neutral characteristics align with the long-term interests of the United States."
VI. Risk reminders: Cold reflection amid the festivities
Despite the optimistic outlook, Tom Lee also listed three major risk points:
Technical risks: Breakthroughs in quantum computing may threaten cryptographic algorithms
Regulatory risks: Global regulatory coordination presents uncertainties
Market risks: Concentrated institutional holdings may trigger a liquidity crisis
"Investors need to understand," he emphasized, "this should be a long-term allocation of 5-10 years, not short-term speculation."
VII. How can ordinary investors participate?
For investors of different capital sizes, Tom Lee suggests:
Under $100,000: Regularly invest in mainstream ETFs, avoid leverage
$100,000-$1 million: Allocate ETF + direct holding + participate in staking
Over $1 million: Consider institution-exclusive structured products
"Most importantly," he finally reminded, "ensure that investment sizes are within the acceptable range, never go all in."
[Data source for this article]
BitMine Q2 2025 financial report
US SEC ETF holding report
CoinMetrics on-chain data
White House Digital Asset Working Group documents
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