FT: Trump's sons took a stake in a company from Kazakhstan with a $1.6 billion U.S. government contract

The sons of US President Donald Trump - Donald Jr. and Eric - became owners of a stake in a mining company from Kazakhstan. This was reported by the Financial Times, citing sources. The company in question, according to the newspaper, last year received a government contract in the United States worth up to $1.6 billion to mine tungsten - a strategic metal used in the production of ammunition and defense products - in Kazakhstan, the newspaper said. The deal expands the Trump family's business empire.

- According to the newspaper's three sources, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump invested in the Skyline Builders construction group in August 2025 through American Ventures, a special purpose vehicle affiliated with brokerage Dominari Securities. The size of the Trump investment was not disclosed. In late October, the brothers ramped up their investment by participating in Skyline's private placement, during which the company raised nearly $24 million.

- On September 22, Kazakh President Kasym-Jomart Tokayev told Donald Trump that he intends to hand over a major tungsten mining project to US investment group Cove Kaz Capital, one of the FT's sources said. The group was competing with Chinese and Russian companies for the project. Details of the presidents' agreements were leaked to the press on October 21, the Financial Times notes.

- On October 31, Skyline, in which the Trump brothers invested, agreed to pay $20 million for 20% in a company with "significant rare metals assets in Asia." That company was Kaz Resources, a subsidiary of New York-based Cove Capital Group, which also controls Cove Kaz, three sources told the FT.

- On November 6, Cove Capital and Tau-Ken Samruk, Kazakhstan's national mining company, officially announced they are working together on what they themselves described as "the world's largest known undeveloped tungsten deposit."

In 2025, The US Export-Import Bank and Development Finance Corporation - two federally funded entities - have pledged to provide up to $1.6bn to support the development of the North Katpar and Upper Kayrakty projects in Kazakhstan: Cove Kaz now controls 70% of these projects, writes the FT.

- Cove Kaz Capital and Kaz Resources merged with Skyline on Thursday, April 30. The new company plans to trade on the Nasdaq exchange under the name Kaz Resources. The merger announcement did not mention either of the Trump brothers, the FT noted. The newspaper did not specify exactly what stake they own in the new company.

The deal expands the Trump family's business empire, with the president's sons taking a stake in a company that insiders hope will help reduce U.S. dependence on rare earth metals from China used in munitions and other defense products, according to the Financial Times.

That said, there is no evidence to suggest that Trump's sons knew Cove was close to receiving a contract from their father's administration when they made their investment in Skyline, or that they had any influence on its conclusion, the FT separately emphasizes.

Donald Trump Jr. is a "passive investor" in American Ventures, is not involved in the operational management of the company and "does not interact with the federal government on behalf of any companies in which he invests," his spokesperson told the FT. Eric Trump did not respond to the newspaper's requests sent to the Trump Organization and American Bitcoin, a company he co-founded. The White House did not respond to the newspaper's request.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor