Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are diving into the cryptocurrency industry with their latest venture, a new bitcoin mining company called American Bitcoin. The company is a joint effort between their firm, American Data Centers, and Hut 8, a major player in the bitcoin mining space.
The Trump siblings will hold a 20% stake in American Bitcoin, while Hut 8 will own the remaining 80%. Hut 8 is contributing around 61,000 mining machines from its data centers in exchange for its share in the venture. American Data Centers, which was formed in February by the Trump brothers and the investment firm Dominari, will merge with Hut 8 to facilitate this new enterprise.
This marks the third major crypto venture for the Trump family in the past year, following the establishment of World Liberty Financial during the election campaign, which offers two types of digital currency. This rapid move into the crypto space has sparked concerns amid the start of Donald Trump’s second administration.
Trump brothers expand into bitcoin
Cryptocurrency, including bitcoin, is digital money designed to operate through an online network without a central authority. Bitcoin is the most prominent and oldest cryptocurrency, with other notable assets like ethereum, tether, and dogecoin gaining popularity recently. Bitcoin is generated through an energy-intensive process known as “mining,” where computer servers solve complex equations to unlock new tokens.
Eric Trump, who will serve as the chief strategy officer for American Bitcoin, conveyed to journalists that the move into digital currency is seen as a valuable “hedge” against the real estate investments traditionally associated with the Trump family. He also discussed plans to build a “bitcoin reserve” and the potential for taking the company public. Despite this new venture, American Bitcoin will remain separate from the Trump Organization, the family’s real estate empire.
Both Trump brothers have expressed their long-standing belief in bitcoin, with Eric emphasizing that “mining it on favorable economics opens an even bigger opportunity.” The cryptocurrency market has responded positively to the Trump administration’s lighter regulatory approach, though the market remains volatile amid broader economic uncertainties. This venture solidifies the Trump family’s growing influence in the cryptocurrency sector and underscores their strategic pivot from traditional real estate to digital assets.