Eric Trump, the second son of President Donald Trump, has publicly condemned a Forbes report on Bitcoin miner American Bitcoin (ABTC) as a 'disgrace to journalism.' The dispute began when Forbes published an investigative report claiming ABTC operated as an arbitrage vehicle targeting investors aligned with the MAGA movement, and that its market capitalization had collapsed by approximately 92%, from $13.2 billion to $1.24 billion, wiping out roughly $500 million in retail investor value.
Eric Trump quickly responded on social media, calling the article 'propaganda' and accusing Forbes of political bias. He argued that the report misrepresented ABTC's financial health and ignored its operational successes. He emphasized ABTC's fourth-quarter revenue of $78.3 million, a 22% increase from the previous quarter, and noted that ABTC holds over 7,000 Bitcoin, ranking it as the 16th largest publicly traded corporate holder of the asset. He also stated the company grew its bitcoin balance by 58% in Q4, mined BTC at a 53% discount to the market price, and currently has nearly 90,000 miners with 28 exahash of capacity.
The Forbes report highlighted that ABTC went public on September 3 during a crypto bull run with a peak valuation of $13.2 billion, even though it only had about $270 million in BTC. Since then, its diluted stock has fallen 92% from the top. Forbes also pointed to a filing revealing that American Bitcoin had only two full-time employees one month after the earnings call where Eric Trump pitched the company as a fast-rising name in crypto. The report detailed that about 70% of American Bitcoin's crypto came from selling shares and buying BTC, not from mining. According to Forbes estimates, total crypto buys were at $525 million, now worth about $390 million, leaving a $135 million gap. Mining ran at about $47,000 per BTC before full costs, while the all-in cost sat near $90,000. The report also noted that Eric Trump's wealth rose from $190 million to $280 million over the period.
This incident highlights a broader debate about media coverage of the cryptocurrency industry. Eric Trump's involvement adds a layer of political tension, as the Trump family has embraced cryptocurrency in recent years. The ABTC case serves as a reminder of the risks and rewards in the volatile cryptocurrency market.
