New York, Jan 21, 2026, 13:28 (EST) — Regular session
BitMine Immersion Technologies, Inc. shares dropped about 2.5%, closing at $27.54 on Wednesday. The slide follows the company’s move to boost its authorized shares, paving the way for a significant stock issuance. By early afternoon, roughly 28 million shares had changed hands.
The vote matters because BitMine is now behaving less like a regular operating firm and more like a public vehicle sitting on a substantial crypto asset portfolio. Greenlighting a wider share authorization usually points to plans for raising capital, which often spells dilution risk for existing shareholders.
Crypto prices dipped once more, tightening the margins for companies that depend on token values and staking yields to bolster hefty balance sheets. Staking means locking up tokens to help run a blockchain network, earning rewards along the way.
A regulatory filing showed shareholders approved a major increase in the company’s authorized common stock—jumping from 500 million to 50 billion shares—at the Jan. 15 annual meeting in Las Vegas. The same filing confirmed investors greenlit an omnibus incentive plan alongside a performance-based pay structure for the executive chairman.
BitMine disclosed on Jan. 20 that by 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 19, it held 4,203,036 ether at $3,211 apiece, alongside 193 bitcoin, $979 million in cash, and a $22 million position in Eightco Holdings, which it referred to as “moonshots.” The total value of its crypto assets, cash, and moonshots reached $14.5 billion. The company noted its ether holdings made up about 3.48% of the total supply. Of that amount, 1,838,003 ether was staked, with the MAVAN staking plan targeting a first-quarter launch.
Chairman Thomas “Tom” Lee unveiled the new stock authorization aimed at backing the company’s steady crypto buildup. “In the past week, we acquired 35,268 ETH,” Lee said, emphasizing his view that Wall Street’s tokenization push mainly revolves around Ethereum. 1
Ether fell around 3.1% to $2,904 on Wednesday. Bitcoin also dipped, sliding about 2.1% to $87,884, dragging down crypto-related stocks.
Authorized shares cap the total a company can issue—they aren’t a promise of sale. But hiking that cap significantly lets boards quickly raise cash, especially for firms using stock to buy crypto or seal deals.
The downside is obvious: if ether keeps falling, the treasury’s value takes a hit. Issuing additional shares could speed up that slide. Plus, staking yields aren’t reliable—they fluctuate with network conditions and may not offset losses from token price drops.
Traders are watching for possible follow-on stock offerings under the new authorization, alongside a firm timeline for the promised MAVAN rollout by March 31, the end of Q1. Investors are also waiting for updates on the company’s pending Beast Industries investment, which BitMine said is expected to close this week.
