Forbes released a large-scale report on American Bitcoin, a company that Eric Trump publicly presents as a profit-generating vehicle through bitcoin mining. According to the publication, the reality looks very different: the company earns not from mining bitcoin, but from selling overvalued shares to retail investors.
What Forbes Reported
According to Forbes, since its listing on Nasdaq in September 2024, American Bitcoin shares have dropped 92% from their peak. During that time, the company sold hundreds of millions of dollars worth of its own stock and used the proceeds to buy BTC, while retail investors lost a combined $500 M. Meanwhile, by its estimates, Eric Trump increased his personal net worth from about $190 M to $280 M.
The publication also claims that the all-in cost of mining one bitcoin is about $90,000, while Eric Trump publicly cited figures in the $57,000–58,000 range. Roughly 70% of the bitcoin on the company’s balance sheet, Forbes says, comes not from mining but from direct purchases on the open market using funds raised through additional share issuance.
The report also points to a hidden risk: American Bitcoin pledged 3,090 BTC as collateral for new equipment worth $330 M. At current prices, the company may end up forfeiting that collateral instead of paying cash, meaning all bitcoin mined since its founding could effectively be written off to cover the debt.
Eric Trump’s Response
In response, Eric Trump called Forbes a political weapon, directly linking the criticism to the outlet’s ownership.
“Since Forbes was acquired by China, it has turned into a political weapon and a disgrace to journalism,” he wrote.
As counterarguments, Trump pointed to the company’s operating metrics and noted that American Bitcoin ranks 16th among publicly traded bitcoin companies worldwide.
“This narrative is no different from the way Forbes has attacked me for years simply because I was a young guy who poured my heart into saving dying children,” he wrote.
Trump urged his followers to examine the sources of the information they consume and explicitly pointed to China as the ultimate beneficiary of the publication.
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