Donald Trump’s newly launched cryptocurrency experienced a significant surge on Monday, reaching nearly $12 billion in market value and attracting billions in trading volume. This development coincided with bitcoin achieving a record high just hours before the U.S. President-elect’s anticipated return to the White House.
On Friday, the launch of Trump’s meme coin, referred to as $TRUMP, saw a significant rise, reaching $58.56 at 0820 GMT on Monday. This surge resulted in a market capitalisation of approximately $11.7 billion, positioning it as the 18th largest cryptocurrency, according to CoinMarketCap. The trading volume over a 24-hour period hit $52.5 billion.
On Friday, Trump unveiled a new digital token featuring branding that includes an image related to his attempted assassination in July. This move marks an expansion of his cryptocurrency ventures, which already encompass World Liberty Financial. According to the token’s website, CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of The Trump Organisation, holds 80% of the total number of tokens. Additionally, another entity, Fight Fight Fight LLC, is also mentioned in connection with the token.
On Sunday, Melania Trump introduced her cryptocurrency, valued at approximately $12.03 and boasted a market capitalisation of $1.9 billion as of 0820 GMT, as reported by CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin reached an all-time high in early European trading, soaring to $109,071.86. This month, the largest cryptocurrency in the world has experienced a remarkable increase of over 10%.
The launch of Trump’s meme coin surprised even those within the cryptocurrency community.
“Although one might be inclined to view this as merely another episode in the Trump saga, the introduction of the official Trump token raises many ethical and regulatory concerns,” remarked Justin D’Anethan, an independent crypto analyst in Hong Kong.
D’Anethan remarked that the coin not only merges the realms of decentralised finance (DeFi) with politics but also “blurs the lines between governance, profit, and influence.”
Is it appropriate for public figures, particularly those with significant political influence, to exert this level of influence in speculative markets? He stated, “That is a question regulators are unlikely to overlook.”
Peter Schiff, the chief economist and global strategist at Euro Pacific Asset Management, highlighted the surge in the value of $TRUMP in a post on the messaging platform X, referring to it as the new digital gold.
Former President Trump has pledged to become a “crypto president,” with plans to issue executive orders designed to alleviate regulatory hurdles in the cryptocurrency space and encourage broader acceptance of digital assets.
The individual is set to take office as president at noon Eastern Time (1700 GMT) on Monday.
The potential for relaxed regulations concerning cryptocurrency policy has generated significant enthusiasm within the industry, contributing to a surge in bitcoin prices following Trump’s election victory in November.