Tom Lee is asking BitMine Immersion (BMNR) shareholders to greenlight a dramatic expansion of the company’s authorized share count — and he’s framing the move as a practical step tied to BitMine’s pivot to Ethereum as its core treasury asset.
In a start-of-year message, the BitMine chairman urged investors to approve a board proposal that would raise the company’s authorized shares from 500 million to 50 billion — a 100x increase. Lee was careful to stress that the change would not automatically dilute existing owners. “It doesn’t mean we’re issuing 50 billion shares. That’s what we want the total max shares to be,” he said, noting the distinction between authorized and issued shares.
Lee laid out three reasons for the increase: it makes raising capital easier, it provides flexibility for opportunistic dealmaking, and — perhaps most importantly for retail accessibility — it enables future share splits. Since BitMine shifted last year to holding ether as its primary treasury asset, its stock has more closely tracked ETH’s price movements. If ether climbs significantly over time (Lee has discussed scenarios in which ETH could reach very high levels, including as much as $250,000 in a bull run tied to a $1 million bitcoin), splits may be necessary to keep individual BitMine shares affordable for everyday investors.
The proposal is presented as part of a broader thesis that Ethereum will be central to Wall Street’s move toward tokenized financial markets — a theme Lee reinforced by pointing to mainstream financial leaders such as BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who has publicly discussed blockchain-based market infrastructure. Lee has also said he’s been buying ether personally, aligning his own holdings with BitMine’s treasury strategy.
Shareholders have until Jan. 14 to cast their votes on the proposal; BitMine’s annual shareholder meeting is scheduled for Jan. 15 in Las Vegas.
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