I recently saw a Forbes report about American Bitcoin, an entity owned by Eric Trump, and it certainly sparked a lot of discussion. In the article, Forbes was very direct, saying the company is using arbitrage tools that capitalize on MAGA investors’ sentiment.

According to Forbes’ analysis, since American Bitcoin listed in September, it has sold about 158 million shares, raising roughly $351 million in cash, and then used that to buy Bitcoin. But there’s a problem—Forbes noted that the company claims mining costs of about $58,000; however, once you factor in real expenses such as equipment depreciation, the total cost is actually around $90,000, which is already higher than the Bitcoin price at the time. In addition, the company faces risks through its mining rig financing agreements: if the Bitcoin price doesn’t rebound, the mined Bitcoin might all have to be used to pay for the equipment.

Forbes also mentioned that the company actually has only two full-time employees, and its stock price has fallen 92% from its peak, with investors estimated to have lost about $500 million. These figures certainly look quite severe.

However, Eric Trump’s response on X is also interesting. He directly took aim at Forbes, saying it was “a political weapon and a disgrace to the news media,” and then threw out his own data: American Bitcoin has been listed for only 7 months and 25 days, and it now holds more than 7,000 Bitcoin, making it the 16th largest publicly traded Bitcoin company in the world. It also has nearly 90,000 mining machines and 28 EH/s of hash rate. He further emphasized that in Q4, the company’s Bitcoin on the balance sheet grew by 58%, mining costs were 53% cheaper than market prices, quarterly revenue was $78.3 million, up 22% quarter-over-quarter.

It seems like both sides have stuck to their own narratives. Forbes focuses on investor losses and the cost structure, while Eric Trump emphasizes the company’s scale and growth pace. Who has the stronger case may ultimately depend on how Bitcoin performs going forward and whether the company can achieve profitability. In any case, this is definitely a topic worth investors doing their own homework on—don’t just listen to one side.