Congressman Joins Cathie Wood, Peter Thiel In Tom Lee's Bitmine Immersion Ethereum Treasury—Then Cashes Out

A Congressman recently disclosed buying shares of Bitmine Immersion Technologies BMNR, adding to the list of prominent names attached to the Ethereum ETH/USD treasury company.

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Congressman Buys BMNR

Congressman Cleo Fields (D-La.) bought shares of Bitmine Immersion stock, with a filing showing multiple purchases of the stock, according to Benzinga's Government Trades page.

Fields filed on Aug. 6 that he had bought the following positions in Bitmine Immersion, with all transactions made on July 16.

$15,000 to $50,000 BMNR shares
$1,001 to $15,000 BMNR shares
$15,000 to $50,000 BMNR shares
$1,001 to $15,000 BMNR shares
$1,001 to $15,000 BMNR shares

In total, Fields purchased between $33,003 and $145,000 worth of BMNR shares on July 16. BMNR shares traded between $40.10 and $48.59 on July 16, the day of the Congressman's purchase.

Fields also disclosed selling $50,000 to $100,000 in BMNR stock in the latest disclosure. The sale was not marked as partial, which suggests that Fields sold his entire position.

The sale was done on July 28, when BMNR stock traded between $34.39 and $41.49. This means Fields could have made a profit, but also likely made only a small profit or took a loss on the trade.

Fields’ position on the House Financial Services Committee and the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy could pose conflicts of interest, particularly in holding a stock that bets on a cryptocurrency like Ethereum for the long term.

Did You Know?

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What's Next for BMNR?

Bitmine Immersion Technologies has become one of the most talked about stocks since announcing its plans for an Ethereum treasury.

The company now owns around $5 billion in Ethereum, making it the world's largest ETH treasury.

In July, Bitmine Immersion was the ninth most-searched ticker on Benzinga Pro, suggesting strong interest in the stock.

Fundstrat founder Tom Lee has been named chairman of the company and a member of the Board of Directors. Lee, a frequent CNBC guest, has discussed the ticker and company multiple times on air, thereby adding to the stock’s interest.

Also helping things along is Peter Thiel’s investment in the company via the Founders Fund, which holds a 9% stake in the company.

Ark Invest and Cathie Wood have also been investing in the company.

Bitmine Immersion is currently the 12^th largest holding in the Ark Innovation ETF ARKK, with $276 million of the stock held, representing 3.3% of the ETF's assets.

The stock is also the 11^th largest holding in the Ark Next Generation Internet ETF ARKW at 3.2% of assets and the 10^th largest holding in the Ark Fintech Innovation ETF ARKF at 3.0% of assets.

What's Next For Congress Trading?

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act, or PELOSI Act, based on the first letter of each of the main words. The name targets Congresswoman and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

The bill made its way out of committee and could come before Congress for a vote.

Benzinga recently polled readers to gauge their stance on a potential ban on Congress members trading.

“Should members of Congress be allowed to buy and sell stocks, options and ETFs?” Benzinga asked.

These were the results:

They should not be allowed to trade stocks, options or ETFs: 43%
They should be allowed to trade as long as they report within 24 hours: 24%
They should only be allowed to trade ETFs and mutual funds: 14%
They should be allowed to trade as long as they report in 45 days: 11%
They should only be allowed to trade stocks: 8%

The poll found that 43% of readers support an outright ban on members of Congress trading stocks, options, or ETFs. Eleven percent voted to leave the current rules unchanged, with a 45-day disclosure window.

Passing the act to ban members of Congress from buying and selling stocks would eliminate the potential conflict of interest from Fields buying stocks and serving on financial subcommittees.

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