Bitmine Immersion Technologies said Thursday it plans to invest $200 million in Beast Industries, the media company founded by YouTube creator MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson. The deal is expected to close around January 19.

If the name Beast Industries sounds familiar, that’s because it sits behind one of the biggest creator platforms on the internet. The company reaches more than 450 million subscribers and pulls in over 5 billion monthly views, making it a rare example of a creator-led business operating at true global scale.

So why is a crypto-focused firm writing a check this large?

Bitmine, which calls itself the world’s leading Ethereum treasury company, says the investment is about more than media. The company sees blockchain technology, particularly Ethereum, becoming more closely tied to how digital platforms operate… from payments to ownership to how value moves online.

“We see Ethereum as a core building block for where finance is going,” said Tom Lee, Bitmine’s chairman and head of research at Fundstrat Global Advisors, speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box. Lee pointed to the growing digitization of assets like currencies, stocks, and financial services, saying those changes are starting to blur the line between traditional finance and digital platforms.

From his perspective, the deal brings together the world’s largest creator-driven media company and one of the biggest Ethereum treasury platforms at a moment when both sides of the digital economy are expanding quickly.

That long-term bet has some heavyweight backing. Bitmine’s investors include Cathie Wood, Bill Miller III, and Galaxy Digital… names that are no strangers to big, thematic investment calls.

After the announcement, shares of Bitmine jumped 1% in early trading Thursday, before falling 1% in the red. The stock is now up over 20% in 2026, compared with roughly a 1% gain in the S&P 500.

Stepping back, Lee remains optimistic on crypto as a whole. He said he expects Bitcoin to reach new highs in 2026 and believes Ethereum could outperform bitcoin this year.

That excitement comes as Washington starts to take another look at crypto regulation. Lawmakers on the Senate Agriculture and Banking Committees are expected to hold hearings this month on a proposed crypto market structure bill, which could help set clearer rules for the industry.

“Crypto took a hit late last year,” Lee said. “As we get further away from that period, we think the market is in a better position to recover.”

Rather than betting on early-stage projects, the deal shows how some crypto firms are putting money behind platforms that already operate at global scale. Just like what Mr. Beast has built.

At the time of publishing this article, Stocks.News holds positions in Ethereum and Bitcoin as mentioned in the article.