Ethereum To $5,500 In Weeks, $12,000 By Year-End, Tom Lee Predicts

Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee laid retired a forceful, policy-driven Ethereum bull thesis successful an interrogation connected August 26, arguing that a US regulatory pivot, Wall Street’s determination to on-chain infrastructure, and organization request routed done nationalist “crypto treasuries” acceptable the signifier for a crisp fourth-quarter repricing. “In the adjacent term, you know, $5,500 should beryllium happening successful the adjacent mates of weeks,” Lee said, adding that by twelvemonth extremity ETH “should beryllium person to $10,000 to $12,000,” with the bulk of crypto’s yearly gains typically arriving successful Q4.

Ethereum’s ‘1971 Moment’

The encephalon down BitMine’s ETH treasury strategy frames 2025 arsenic a structural interruption comparable to the US dollar’s 1971 interruption from gold. In his view, Washington’s posture has shifted from seeing crypto arsenic a menace to positioning it arsenic an instrumentality of fiscal leadership. “In the past 12 months, there’s been a oversea change, partially due to the fact that of the election, wherever crypto is nary longer considered an enemy… but truly portion of however the US fiscal strategy volition get leadership,” Lee said.

He pointed to stablecoins—“the breakout product, you know, the chat-GPT moment”—the projected GENIUS Act and what helium called the SEC’s “Project Crypto,” contending these signals amusement regulators privation “Wall Street to usage the blockchain to really marque America much innovative and really dispersed America’s fiscal power astir the world.”

From there, Lee’s thesis centers connected Ethereum arsenic the default organization colony layer. “Wall Street doesn’t privation the fastest chain… They privation a reliable concatenation that they tin physique upon. Ethereum has had zero downtime successful its full history. So to me, it’s the earthy selection.”

Calling Ethereum a “fat protocol,” helium argued that worth accrues astatine the basal furniture arsenic tokenization and outgo rails migrate on-chain. Citing enactment “from Mosaics and from Fundstrat,” Lee said that, if the web captures large outgo and banking flows, “you get to a web worth of $60,000 worth per ETH” implicit a 10- to 15-year horizon.

BitMine’s Strategy

A important portion of the speech focused connected the public-equity conveyance helium chairs, Bitmine, which helium described arsenic an actively managed Ethereum treasury. Lee contrasted holding spot ETH with owning a institution that uses superior markets to grow ETH per share. “When Bitmine started… determination was lone $4 worthy of Ethereum held per share,” helium said of a July 8 baseline.

“As of August 24, we present person $39.84 worthy of Ethereum held per share… So the crushed we had a 10x successful your holdings is due to the fact that Bitmine is actively managing to turn your Ethereum held per stock by utilizing superior markets and attracting the involvement of organization investors.”

He argued that this attack tin beryllium “anti-dilutive” erstwhile executed astatine an equity premium to nett plus value: “If your ETH per stock is going up, nary of the superior markets is dilution.” Lee added that Bitmine has “a billion-dollar banal repurchase programme successful spot due to the fact that if the banal becomes excessively inexpensive comparative to its ETH holdings, it would marque much consciousness to really bargain backmost stock.”

On strategy, Lee outlined an ambition to power astir 5% of staked ETH, claiming a “power law” effect arsenic web value scales. “If you’re a staking entity that owns 5 percent, past you person a affirmative power connected aboriginal upgrades… [and] 1 of the astir important vectors for erstwhile Wall Street wants to physique connected Ethereum,” helium said. With Ethereum’s proof-of-stake mechanics, helium asserted that existent holdings could make important income: “With the $9 cardinal worthy of ETH held today, that’s astir about $300 cardinal of nett income.”

Tom Lee’s Macro View

Institutional demand, Lee maintained, is yet rotating toward ETH via regulated wrappers and equities, adjacent arsenic galore ample allocators inactive underweight it. “Ethereum is inactive mostly not liked by institutions due to the fact that astir person stake connected Bitcoin… that’s wherefore Ethereum is astir apt falling into… the astir hated rally,” helium said, noting that year-to-date ETH gains of 35 percent person outpaced Bitcoin’s 17 percent.”

Lee’s macro overlay extends beyond crypto. He reiterated a constructive equity presumption contingent connected Federal Reserve easing and a cyclical upturn. “If the Fed follows done and begins to cut… and past we get a driblet successful owe rates and the ISM turning up and truthful financials truly statesman to participate, I deliberation that’s wherefore we get to 6,800 oregon truthful connected the S&P,” helium said. While acknowledging that “September is the period everyone’s going to beryllium disquieted about,” helium characterized immoderate pullback arsenic buyable: “Since 2022… that has ever been a dip buying opportunity.”

At property time, ETH traded astatine $4,614.

ETH stalls beneath cardinal resistance, 1-week illustration | Source: ETHUSDT connected TradingView.com

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