American Bitcoin Corp. (ABTC), with backing from Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Sept. 3 to raise $2.1 billion through share sales. The Nasdaq debut of ABTC was volatile, with the stock surging 91% in one hour before eventually closing lower than the opening price. The stock opened at $6.90, reached $13.20, and experienced five trading halts in the initial hours. Despite the initial surge, the share price fell back to its opening price before recovering at the end of the trading session. Currently, the stock is showing signs of upward momentum after hours, trading at $8.06, up roughly 16% for the day.
American Bitcoin emerged from a stock-for-stock merger with Gryphon Digital Mining, becoming a publicly traded Bitcoin accumulation platform under the ticker ABTC. The transaction, completed earlier this year, positions American Bitcoin as the parent company, with former American Bitcoin shareholders owning approximately 98% of the combined entity.
American Bitcoin was launched in March as a majority-owned subsidiary of energy company Hut 8, which holds an 80% ownership stake. The Trump brothers have minority interests in the remaining 20% alongside other founding partners. Eric Trump serves as the chief strategy officer, while Matt Prusak, the CEO, leads the company. Prusak sees the merger as an opportunity to become a dominant player in the fragmented Bitcoin mining sector. The company operates an asset-light model through a strategic partnership with Hut 8, leveraging existing infrastructure for Bitcoin accumulation rather than building mining facilities from scratch.
Gryphon contributes operational mining assets, including 899 petahash per second of self-mining hash rate as of the second quarter of 2024. The company focuses on renewable and low-cost energy sources, including the recent acquisition of natural gas assets in Canada.
The merger between American Bitcoin and Gryphon reflects the broader consolidation trends in US Bitcoin mining, following last year’s halving event. Companies are seeking greater scale and operational efficiency through mergers and acquisitions to remain competitive in the challenging post-halving environment. The SEC filing represents the Trump family’s growing involvement in the crypto industry, combining Gryphon’s mining operations with American Bitcoin’s capital market access and strategic vision for institutional-scale Bitcoin accumulation.
