Fundstrat’s Tom Lee says the crypto bull market is underway and could become the largest in history as Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has entered a new bullish cycle, while Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) could see outsized gains with TradFi assets moving on chain.
In his October 2026 chairman’s message for Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSE:BMNR), Lee argued that Bitcoin’s Aug. 19 breakout above its 200-day moving average was a major bullish signal as eight of the nine crossings above the 200-DMA since 2012 signaled bull markets.
Since 2010, Bitcoin has delivered an average six-month forward return of 193% when trading above the indicator, with an 80% positive win rate.
Nevertheless, ETH is down over 5% on Thursday, dropping from $2,700 at the start of the week to $2,420 at the time of writing.
Bitcoin is down 3%, trading around $81,000.
Why Lee Calls It “Biggest Crypto Bull Market“
Lee noted that while earlier cycles were fueled by initial coin offerings, NFTs and stablecoins, the next expansion could be different.
Tokenization will make this cycle fundamentally different from previous retail-driven booms.
If just 10% moves on-chain, Lee projects a potential $16 trillion blockchain market opportunity, based on his assumption that each dollar tokenized generates roughly one dollar in blockchain value.
He also pointed to a generational wealth transfer that could redirect $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion toward equities and digital assets.
Other bullish factors include:
- Institutional demand: Franklin Templeton, Fidelity and other major financial institutions increasingly recognize crypto’s bullish outlook.
- ETF inflows: Bitcoin ETF flows have turned positive year-to-date, signaling renewed investor demand.
- Market strength: Ethereum outperformed the S&P 500 by 6,500 basis points in Q3 despite rising bond yields, surging oil prices and tighter financial conditions.
- Cycle timing: Lee identified Oct. 5 as the bottom of Bitcoin’s four-year cycle, suggesting the bear market has ended.
BitMine Nears 5% Supply
Tom Lee sees Ethereum benefiting from institutional tokenization, AI adoption and growing demand for blockchain infrastructure.
Citing Ethereum’s historical rallies of 227x and 54x, Lee suggested another 25-fold surge could push ETH toward $22,000 to $62,000.
Meanwhile, Ethereum treasury companies hold approximately $21 billion in ETH, potentially tightening supply.
Lee said BitMine has accumulated nearly 6 million ETH and needs another 100,000 ETH to reach its target of owning 5% of Ethereum’s supply.
He estimated that ETH reaching $22,000 could lift BitMine shares to $300 to $500, while a surge to $62,000 could push the stock toward $1,200 to $1,500.
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