Trump-Backed American Bitcoin Turns a Profit as Bitcoin Rise Lifts Books

In brief American Bitcoin, the Trump-family-backed, Hut 8-majority-owned miner, swung to roughly $126 million in net income in Q3, from a $57.2 million loss in Q2, with adjusted EBITDA of about $221 million. The turnaround leaned heavily on a $197 million gain on its digital assets as Bitcoin’s book value rose. Mining got harder—output fell to 891 BTC and cost to mine rose to ~$42,100 on seasonal power costs. American Bitcoin, the Trump-family-backed mining venture, swung to a roughly $126 million profit in the third quarter, a sharp reversal from the loss it posted three months earlier, as a jump in Bitcoin’s book value and disciplined accumulation powered its best showing yet.The Nasdaq-listed company, which trades under the ticker ABTC and is majority-owned by miner Hut 8, reported net income of about $126 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with a $57.2 million net loss in the second quarter.Adjusted EBITDA came in at roughly $221 million, versus a $45 million loss the prior quarter. Much of the swing came from a $197 million gain on its digital assets, as Bitcoin’s value rose during the period.The company grew its Bitcoin reserve to about 8,427 BTC, up roughly 425 coins, or 5%, from the end of June, and lifted its “satoshis per share,” a measure of how much Bitcoin backs each share, by about 5%. Notably, it did so without buying any Bitcoin or issuing new shares through its at-the-market program during the quarter, relying instead on its own mining output.“These are significant results, particularly in a challenging digital asset market,” said Eric Trump, the company’s co-founder and chief strategy officer, touting the profit and the growth in Bitcoin per share. CEO Mike Ho credited “a disciplined, Bitcoin-denominated operating business,” saying the firm continued “mining Bitcoin at a structural discount to spot.”The mining operation itself had a tougher quarter. American Bitcoin mined about 891 BTC, down from 932 in the prior period, and its cost to mine rose to roughly $42,100 per Bitcoin from $36,500, which it attributed to higher seasonal power costs. Gross margin slipped to 41% from 49%. The company ended the quarter with a fleet of about 89,242 miners and 28.1 exahashes per second of capacity.The results cap a volatile stretch for the venture. American Bitcoin notched a record mining quarter earlier this year as it crossed 8,000 BTC, but its stock has struggled, hitting new lows and prompting a 1-for-15 reverse stock split in July. Shares have fallen well below their debut price since the company went public through a merger with Gryphon Digital Mining.The company’s profit, while striking, rests heavily on an accounting gain tied to Bitcoin’s price rather than core mining operations, meaning a downturn in Bitcoin could just as easily swing the figure back into the red.Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more. Join 72,000+ readersCreate an account to save your articles.