BitMine Immersion Technologies has significantly expanded its involvement in Ethereum’s staking ecosystem, adding another 82,560 ETH about $259 million in value to the network’s deposit queue. This fresh influx has pushed BitMine’s total staked Ether to 544,064 ETH, worth roughly $1.62 billion at current prices, according to on-chain analyst Lookonchain.
On-chain data from Arkham shows that the firm executed multiple large transfers into Ethereum’s BatchDeposit contract in recent hours, a move that underscores growing institutional interest in ETH staking as a yield strategy. BitMine first began routing substantial Ether toward staking on Dec. 26, when it deposited nearly $219 million in ETH.
Validator Entry Pressure Builds
BitMine’s continued staking activity has added pressure to Ethereum’s validator entry queue, which now sits close to 977,000 ETH. The growing backlog means newly staked validators now face a wait of roughly 17 days before they can go live on the network, based on figures from the Ethereum Validator Queue tracker. By comparison, the withdrawal side remains far less congested, with a little over 113,000 ETH currently sitting in the exit queue.
Zooming out, Ethereum’s staking participation continues to climb. More than 35.5 million ETH, or about 29% of the total supply, is currently locked into the network. Even at that scale, returns have not moved higher, with annualized staking yields still sitting near 2.54%.
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What comes next
BitMine has signaled that its next phase of growth will focus on infrastructure rather than simple expansion. In late 2025, the company expects to introduce its own validator system under the Made in America Validator Network, or MAVAN. The plan calls for an early 2026 debut, beginning with a small pilot program carried out with three institutional staking partners to test performance and security before expanding further.
At the same time, Tom Lee, BitMine’s chairman, has pushed for a substantial increase in the company’s authorized share count, proposing a ceiling of 50 billion shares. He says the move would give BitMine flexibility to execute stock splits in the future as the company’s valuation rises in step with Ether’s price.
