Trump’s son’s mining company plunges 51% in 30 minutes! Family’s crypto empire evaporates $800 million

As Bitcoin has fallen more than 30% from its all-time high and the market is experiencing intense volatility, American Bitcoin (ABTC), a Bitcoin mining company backed by Donald Trump’s sons, suffered a dramatic blow on December 2. Its share price plunged by half within 30 minutes, repeatedly triggering circuit breakers. The mining company, co-founded by Eric Trump, saw its intraday low hit $1.75, marking a 51% drop.

Trump Sons’ Mining Firm ABTC Flash Crashes: Market Cap Halved in 30 Minutes as Circuit Breakers Triggered

(Source: Trading View)

American Bitcoin (ABTC) lost more than half its market cap in just 30 minutes on Tuesday, making it one of the most dramatic single-stock crashes of the current crypto market correction. The miner, co-founded by Eric Trump, was hit by the cascading impact of the crypto market drop. Its stock price plunged right after the open, triggering circuit breakers multiple times and demonstrating the ferocity of the sell-off.

This crash came on the heels of Monday’s massive liquidation event, which saw nearly $1 billion in leveraged positions wiped out. Bitcoin had tumbled from a high of about $126,000 in October to below $80,000 in November, one of the most severe short-term corrections in history. Such a steep drop not only directly impacted Bitcoin holders but also triggered systemic shocks across all crypto-related assets through forced liquidations and spreading panic.

Although the market briefly stabilized on Tuesday, the damage to ABTC had already been done. Technically, a 51% drop within 30 minutes was far beyond normal volatility, indicating a liquidity crisis or major institutional sell-off. Such a crash often leaves a long-lasting scar on investor psychology, and even if the price rebounds, confidence is hard to restore in the short term.

ABTC was launched this year as a spinoff from Hut 8 Corp., initially attracting traders and quickly surging in price. However, since peaking in September, the company’s market cap has now evaporated by more than 78%. ABTC went public on Nasdaq in September via a reverse merger with Gryphon Digital Mining. After listing, the stock reached $9.31, but has now fallen about 78% from its high. As of November, the company reported a Q3 net profit of $3.5 million and revenue of $64.2 million, but in the current market sentiment, its fundamentals failed to provide any boost.

Trump Family’s Crypto Investment Portfolio Under Heavy Pressure

The Trump sons’ deep involvement in crypto investments is facing severe losses. Donald Trump Jr., as one of American Bitcoin’s shareholders, has seen his stake shrink dramatically as ABTC stock plummeted. Eric Trump is not only a co-founder of ABTC but also actively promotes the Trump family’s other crypto ventures. However, the family’s other crypto assets have also suffered, highlighting the systemic impact of this correction.

Overview of Trump Family Crypto Asset Losses

ABTC Mining Company: Down 78% in two months since listing, Donald Trump Jr.’s holdings have shrunk significantly

WLFI Token: Related to the Trump-backed DeFi platform World Liberty Financial, down more than 30% from its September peak

ALT5 Sigma: Fund holding WLFI has plunged over 80% from its high

Trump Media & Technology Group: Stock price at an all-time low, Trump’s own holdings have fallen by about $800 million in value since September

The Trump family is not just holding tokens but is deeply involved in multiple sectors of the crypto industry. While this diversification can mitigate some risk, consecutive crashes have still caused losses to pile up rapidly. Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), parent company of Truth Social, saw its stock hit a historic low on Wednesday, a decline closely linked to the company’s increased exposure to crypto assets. As the largest shareholder, Trump’s current holdings (managed by a trust overseen by Donald Trump Jr.) have lost about $800 million in value since September.

The company has yet to turn a profit, but filings in July confirmed it spent about $2 billion purchasing Bitcoin and other digital assets: it holds 11,500 Bitcoins with an average purchase price of about $115,000. After Bitcoin’s price drop, this position is down about 25% on paper. In addition, Trump Media also purchased Crypto.com’s CRO token, valued at about $147 million as of the end of September, but CRO has since fallen about 50%. The two companies are jointly developing a new prediction platform, Truth Predict, for users to bet on sports and political events, but the project is still under construction.

Eric Trump Stands Firm: “Those Who Embrace Volatility Will Ultimately Be Winners”

Despite heavy losses, Eric Trump told Bloomberg his stance is unwavering: “What a great buying opportunity,” he said. “Those who embrace volatility will ultimately be winners. I’ve never been more optimistic about crypto and the future of modernizing the financial system.” Last month, Eric Trump also said he was not worried about volatility at all, calling it “an investor’s friend for accumulation at low prices.”

Such statements are not uncommon in the crypto community, where many long-term believers emphasize “buying opportunities” during market crashes. However, for ordinary investors, this optimism requires a very high risk tolerance and substantial capital. As representatives of the family business, the Trump sons’ public statements also serve to maintain confidence in their family’s crypto investments and avoid further negative sentiment toward the Trump brand.

However, market data shows Eric Trump’s optimism has not stemmed the tide of selling. Even though ABTC turned profitable in Q3 with $3.47 million in net income and $64.2 million revenue, and added 3,000 Bitcoins to its holdings for a total of over 4,000, it still failed to withstand the negative market sentiment. This demonstrates that in extreme market conditions, fundamental data is often overshadowed by panic, and investors focus more on short-term liquidity and risk aversion.

Bitcoin Proxy Stocks Collapse Across the Board: MicroStrategy Plunges Over 50%

American Bitcoin’s experience is not unique. As the crypto market corrects, numerous public companies with large Bitcoin reserves or high crypto exposure are being revalued. This sell-off was not triggered by a single factor, but by the overall crypto market pullback and profit-taking pressure on tech stocks.

MicroStrategy (MSTR), led by Michael Saylor, has seen its stock price plunge over 50%, with its market cap even falling below the value of its Bitcoin holdings, sparking market concerns. This phenomenon is known as a “negative premium,” meaning investors would rather hold Bitcoin directly than take on a company’s operational risks and management costs. MSTR was once seen as a “Bitcoin ETF alternative,” but when panic hits the market, the weakness of this proxy investment model becomes apparent.

The Trump family’s crypto strategy is essentially a magnified form of “Bitcoin proxy trading,” and is seen as a Bitcoin concept stock. Whether it’s ABTC’s mining model or TMTG’s direct holdings, both tightly bind the family’s wealth to the price of Bitcoin. When Bitcoin plunges from $126,000 to $80,000, these proxy assets often fall even further, as they also carry company operating risk, liquidity risk, and collapsing sentiment premiums.

For investors following the Trump family, this incident provides an important warning: Political influence and brand effects offer no immunity from systemic market risk. When the tide goes out, all high-risk assets are left swimming naked.