Eric Trump eyes $570 million windfall from four-month-old company
The second son of President Donald Trump holds a large stake in closely held American Bitcoin, which he co-founded in March. In a planned merger, his interest will be exchanged for about 367 million new shares of Nasdaq-listed Gryphon Digital Mining, according to a securities filing on Tuesday. Gryphon traded at about $US1 on Thursday. The combined company will be called American Bitcoin.
The disclosure of the stake's size comes the same week that the president, a cryptocurrency sceptic-turned-cheerleader, issued recommendations to encourage the use of digital assets for a 'golden age of crypto.' Earlier this year, he ordered the establishment of a national Bitcoin stockpile.
'Neither the President nor his family have ever engaged, or will ever engage, in conflicts of interest,' Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said in a statement. Spokespeople for Eric Trump and Gryphon didn't respond to messages seeking comment
A recent private sale of existing American Bitcoin stock implied the new shares are worth 25 cents apiece, the filing noted. That would peg Eric Trump's stake at $US92 million.
American Bitcoin was formed in March by combining the mining computers owned by a Miami-based company, Hut 8 Corp., with a newly formed entity whose investors included Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. Securities filings don't show what they paid for their stakes. A spokesperson for Hut 8 declined to comment.
Announcing the tie-up, Hut 8 said the deal would combine Hut 8's existing mining operations with 'Eric Trump's commercial acumen, capital markets expertise and commitment to the advancement of decentralised financial systems.'
Eric Trump, who remains an executive at his father's real estate business and is involved with several other family ventures, is serving as 'chief strategy officer' of American Bitcoin. He has a three-year advisory agreement that doesn't come with compensation, the filing shows.
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