 As in Iraq, TFBSO in Afghanistan concentrated on attracting private foreign direct investment, corporate development, procurement, and reform of the banking sector.In May 2011, TFBSO and the U.S. Geological Survey announced that they had identified dozens of reserves of copper, gold, lithium, and rare earth minerals in Afghanistan.The report trumpeted the potential value of the mineral assets, estimating that exploiting the lithium deposits alone “could result in up to $1.2 billion in additional annual revenue for the government of Afghanistan.” Reportedly in response to outreach from former CIA operative and TFBSO consultant Milton Bearden, the "New York Times" reported in a front-page article that the find was “far beyond any previously known reserves and enough to fundamentally alter the Afghan economy and perhaps the Afghan war itself.”

"Raw Story" reported that these findings were not new, and that “a detailed US Geological Survey report on Afghanistan’s mineral resources was published as recently as 2007.” New York Times reporter James Risen later told Yahoo News that “Milt convinced Brinkley to talk to me, and Brinkley convinced other Pentagon officials to go on the record.