Donald Trump has launched a cryptocurrency “meme coin” ahead of his inauguration for a second term as US president, called $Trump.
He announced the launch on Truth Social and X on Friday night. The asset has since soared in value, more than tripling in price from about $20 per token to more than $70, with at least $24bn in trading volume as of Sunday morning and more than $14bn in market capitalization.
A “meme coin” is a type of cryptocurrency inspired by trends such as internet memes with no inherent utility, and are often susceptible to price swings and crashes. The “Hawk Tuah girl”’s meme coin dropped 95% shortly after its release last month, fallen from a $500m market capitalization to $25m, with investors submitting complaints with the SEC of insider trading.
The cryptocurrency community has been eagerly anticipating Trump’s second term, with anticipated favorable regulatory environments and Trump claiming he intends to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet”.
The president-elect has nominated Paul Atkins to serve as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a known crypto enthusiast who served as co-chair of the crypto advocacy group Digital Chamber’s Token Alliance since 2017.
Trump has also promised to issue an executive order once in office to create a crypto advisory council with as many as 20 members.
The speculative nature of crypto assets has incited concerns over a potential bubble, where political endorsements and support far inflate asset prices beyond fundamental values and do not reflect the risks associated with investments.
“Strong political and government endorsements of crypto, paradoxically, pose a threat to its decentralisation ethos and could ultimately undermine the appeal of crypto assets,” wrote Larisa Yarovaya, an associate professor of finance and director of the Centre for Digital Finance at Southampton Business School, for the Guardian earlier this month. “If, in 2025, the SEC turns a blind eye, consumers could be left entirely unprotected from financial losses – especially when another meme coin bubble bursts.”
According to the Trump meme coin website, a Trump-owned company called CIC Digital LLC owns 80% of the coin’s supply of 200m tokens, which is expected to grow to 1bn over three years.
Trump has previously released batches of crypto trading cards during his presidential campaign, generating over $4m per release in total revenue. His sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr also launched a cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, in 2024, inciting concerns of an overt conflict of interest.
Leading crypto firms have poured at least $10m into Trump’s Inauguration fund.
The meme coin’s website included a disclaimer stating: “Trump Memes are intended to function as an expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol “$TRUMP” and the associated artwork, and are not intended to be, or to be the subject of, an investment opportunity, investment contract, or security of any type. GetTrumpMemes.com is not political and has nothing to do with any political campaign or any political office or governmental agency.”
