American Bitcoin’s stock unraveled in real time Tuesday.
The mining and Bitcoin-treasury company co-founded by Eric Trump saw its stock plunge more than 50% in the first hour of trading, triggering multiple halts and wiping out months of speculative gains.
The company, listed on Nasdaq under the ticker ABTC, had already been reeling from Bitcoin’s steep pullback over the past month.
But the speed of Tuesday’s sell-off stunned even veteran crypto-equity watchers. Shares collapsed to an intraday low of $1.75, a 51% drop, before stabilizing slightly. By time of writing, the stock is still down more than 35%.
No single headline set off the avalanche. But market conditions were brittle. A day earlier, nearly $1 billion in leveraged crypto positions were liquidated. Bitcoin had crashed to the mid-$85,000s.
A miner tied to a political brand
Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. helped launch American Bitcoin earlier this year. Eric serves as co-founder and chief strategy officer. Donald Trump Jr. is listed as an investor.
Their involvement gave the company immediate name recognition, but also tied ABTC’s identity to one of the most politically charged families in America.
The firm was spun out of Hut 8 and went public in September through a reverse-merger with Gryphon Digital Mining.
The market liked the story at first. Shares spiked to $9.31 in the early days. Some traders treated it like another Trump-themed momentum play.
But that momentum hasn’t lasted. Since that September peak, the stock is now down more than 78%.
SEC filings show most insiders, including the Trump sons, are barred from selling shares until at least March 2026. That ruled out insider-dumping speculation.
Bitcoin rebounds — but American Bitcoin doesn’t
What made Tuesday’s collapse even more striking was that it happened as Bitcoin surged. After the Monday washout, BTC roared back above $91,000 by midday Tuesday. Most crypto-exposed stocks bounced. American Bitcoin wasn’t one of them.
Heavy volume — more than 55 million shares, compared with a 3 million daily average — signaled a stampede for the exits.
ABTC’s business is deeply tied to the price of Bitcoin. The company says it holds more than 3,000 BTC accumulated through mining and market purchases.
In its third-quarter report, American Bitcoin posted $64.2 million in revenue and $3.5 million in net income. These are fairly healthy numbers — better than many miners.
Trump-linked crypto ventures take a hit
The sell-off has extended beyond ABTC. WLFI, the token tied to World Liberty Financial, fell more than 30% from its recent high, according to Bloomberg.
ALT5 Sigma, which holds WLFI in its treasury, dropped over 80%. Trump Media & Technology Group, the operator of Truth Social, also fell sharply after its $2 billion Bitcoin and crypto holdings lost roughly 25% of value.
Donald Trump’s stake in Trump Media has declined by an estimated $800 million since September. Other Trump-related crypto ventures, including miners, tokens, and meme coins, also faced heavy losses.
Eric Trump has called all bitcoin volatility a “buying opportunity,” saying investors who embrace dips could benefit.
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