Ethereum rose 7.46% to $2,619 by the end of the working week on September 11, bringing its weekly gain to 6.62%. Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee called the momentum the start of a massive "face-ripper rally" for short sellers. The move followed the release of August U.S. Consumer Price Index data, which showed annual inflation at the expected 3.4% while Core CPI increased 0.3% month over month, slightly above forecasts. Fundstrat said defensive positioning before the data left cash available to rotate into risk assets, contributing to forced short-position liquidations. Bitmine Immersion Technologies, a former mining company chaired by Lee since summer 2025, is pursuing its "alchemy of 5%" strategy through weekly Ethereum purchases. By September 2026, it had accumulated 5.9 million ETH, or about 4.9% of global supply, with most of the holdings placed in staking (locking crypto to earn rewards).