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$Trump
Cryptocurrency launched by Donald Trump From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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$TRUMP (stylized in all caps) is a meme coin associated with United States president Donald Trump, hosted on the Solana blockchain platform.[1] One billion coins were originally created; 800 million remain owned by two Trump-owned companies, after 200 million were publicly released in an initial coin offering (ICO) on January 17, 2025. Less than a day later, the aggregate market value of all coins was more than $27 billion, valuing Trump's holdings at more than $20 billion. A March 2025 Financial Times analysis found that the crypto project netted at least $350 million through sales of tokens and fees.[2]
The venture has faced widespread condemnation from ethics experts for Donald Trump's conflicts of interest related to the project and his presidential duties. During the second Trump administration, Trump has promoted $TRUMP and taken actions that have raised the value of the meme coin, contributing to a substantial increase in his net worth.[3]
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History
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Donald J. Trump 
@realDonaldTrumpMy NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It's time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING! Join my very special Trump Community. GET YOUR $TRUMP NOW. Go to gettrumpmemes.com/ — Have Fun!
January 17, 2025[4]
The Trump meme coin was launched on January 17, 2025, three days before Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States. The lack of a public announcement initially led to concerns that the cryptocurrency was a scam and might have no association to the president-elect.[5] Several hours later, Trump announced $TRUMP on his X and Truth social accounts.[6] The meme coin website described it as the "only official Trump meme".[7][8] Its logo is a cartoon image of Trump raising his fist after surviving the attempted assassination in July 2024.[9] A disclaimer said that the coin was "not intended to be, or the subject of" an investment opportunity or a security and was "not political and has nothing to do with" any political campaign, political office or government agency.[8] The terms of the offering prohibit coin buyers from joining any class-action lawsuits against the project and assert indemnity against any claims.[10] Trump promoted the coin on the night of its ICO while a "Crypto Ball" was underway.[11]
After its launch, its price soared by over 300% overnight.[12] Within two days, it became the 19th most valuable form of cryptocurrency in the world, with a total trading value of nearly $13 billion, and a total of $29 billion worth of trades based on a $64 value of each of the 200 million tokens issued by the afternoon of January 19. The New York Times reported that Trump affiliates controlled an additional 800 million tokens that, hypothetically, could be worth over $56 billion, potentially making Trump one of the richest people in the world at an estimated net worth of $63.8 billion.[13]
A March 2025, a Financial Times analysis found that the crypto project netted at least $350 million ($314 million from the sale of the tokens and $36 million from fees).[2] However, by July 2025, New York reported that the president's holdings in the coin were only worth about $93 million.[14] This was contradicted by reporting in The New Yorker in August 2025 suggesting that holdings held by Trump through a partnership "are potentially worth several billion dollars" and that actualized profits from the meme coin were $385 million.[15]
Private dinner
In April 2025, the top 220 holders of the coin were offered dinner with the president, and the very top 25 holders would receive a special VIP White House tour. Following the announcement, the coin jumped more than 50%.[16][17] Analysis found that leaked information about the promotion allowed certain traders to make bets on the coin before it was publicly announced. According to The New York Times, certain buyers in interviews and statements said they "bought the coins or entered the dinner contest with the intention of securing an action by Mr. Trump to affect United States policy".[18] On May 13, The New York Times reported that GD Culture Group, a small company with ties to China, no reported revenue in 2024, and affiliated with TikTok, announced it would spend $300 million on purchasing Bitcoin and $TRUMP using proceeds from "a stock sale to an unnamed entity in the British Virgin Islands". The purchase was the first known instance of a China-linked firm buying Trump's cryptocurrency. TikTok is facing a ban in the US, although Trump has postponed the decision several times.[19]
According to The New York Times, at least twenty investors sold or transferred their holdings in $Trump on May 12. The bidding process allowed certain investors to profit; in one instance, an investor, known only as "Noah", purchased US$2.2 million in $Trump prior to the contest and sold it at the end of the contest, profiting over US$950,000. In an apparent effort to stop the sell-off, the social media account associated with $Trump promised to give investors who kept their coins a non-fungible token known as "Trump Diamond Hand" and that they would earn reward points.[20] Several investors were able to attend the dinner at the only cost of trading fees by shorting $TRUMP.[21] According to NBC News, the winners of the contest collectively spent US$394 million.[22] References to a tour of the White House were later removed from the dinner's website; a senior Trump official stated that the administration was not conducting a tour for the investors.[23]
The "black-tie optional"[24] dinner was held at Trump National Golf Club Washington, D.C. in Sterling, Virginia.[25] Prior to the dinner, protesters had gathered to condemn the gathering, shouting, "Shame!"[26] The menu featured filet mignon, pan-seared halibut, and a "Trump organic field green salad".[25] An attendee who spoke to The Verge described "pretty light" security,[27] Trump's limited presence and his speech—delivered behind a podium with the presidential seal,[28] and a private afterparty at the Washington Marriott Capitol Hill hosted by Memecore.[27] Trump's speech was approximately fifteen[24] to twenty minutes long.[29] Four of the highest-paying investors, including Justin Sun, were given US$100,000 Tourbillon watches.[27] The dinner was Sun's first visit to the United States since being investigated by the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York in 2021.[30]
According to an analysis by the Times and Nansen, several investors were from Australia and Singapore. MemeCore, a cryptocurrency company, invested US$19.3 million to get second place; Cherry Hsu, the company's chief business officer, stated that he was interested in sharing its "vision and mission" with Trump and other attendees. The first-place winner was an account belonging to HTX that was believed to be associated with Justin Sun. Javier Selgas, the chief executive of Fr8Tech, told the Securities and Exchange Commission that he intended to purchase US$20 million in $TRUMP in an effort to convince Trump to lower tariffs on Mexico.[18] GD Culture Group, a publicly traded company with ties to China, announced that it had secured US$300 million to purchase Bitcoin and $TRUMP from a stock sale to the British Virgin Islands.[25] Through a guest list and social media, the Times later identified many of the attendees, including Sun and the former basketball player Lamar Odom.[31]
The dinner posed ethics concerns and opportunities for foreign influence.[32][18] Wyoming senator Cynthia Lummis and Senate majority leader Thom Tillis expressed concerns over the dinner.[24] Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington's Donald Sherman described it as "one of the most blatant and appalling instances of selling access to the presidency".[33] Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren described the dinner as an "orgy of corruption", while Oregon senator Jeff Merkley referred to it as "the Mount Everest of American corruption."[34][35]
Merkley and Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer[24] introduced a bill to ban senior executive branch officials—including Trump—and their family from profiting off of cryptocurrency. Merkley additionally asked the Office of Government Ethics to investigate the dinner.[20] The Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations's investigation into cryptocurrency businesses involving Trump broadened to include the dinner.[36] Maryland representative Jamie Raskin, the ranking member of the House Committee on the Judiciary, later initiated an inquiry into the dinner.[37] The late-night television hosts Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel ridiculed the dinner for its attendees and its apparent corruption, respectively.[38]
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Token distribution
According to the memecoin's website, ownership of the token is largely concentrated in two Trump owned entities: CIC Digital LLC and Fight Fight Fight LLC, which together hold 80 percent of the coins remaining after the ICO.[39][2] Trump's personal profit under this ownership structure is unclear.[2] The holdings are scheduled for gradual release over three years.[40]
SEC Classification
The SEC's Division of Corporation Finance stated that meme coins like $TRUMP do not qualify as securities under federal law, citing their speculative nature and lack of inherent utility.[41] However, CFTC officials argued for jurisdiction over meme coins as commodities, emphasizing their authority to prosecute market manipulation.[42]
Reception
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Some crypto executives and investors said Trump had undermined the credibility of the industry they had worked hard to build by selling coins known for their speculative nature and extreme volatility. They also noted Trump's brazen conflict of interest by setting crypto market policies while directly benefiting from participating in the market. Some noted its similarity to a "rug pull", in which a coin is launched and quickly abandoned, leaving early investors with steep losses. The Wall Street Journal reported "Even the most ardent Trump supporters reached a breaking point when the $MELANIA token launched less than 48 hours after" $TRUMP, with one urging Trump to fire the advisor who recommended it. Erik Voorhees, a prominent Bitcoin investor, criticized the coin as "stupid and embarrassing".[10][43][44]
Others discussed its lack of any utility beyond enriching Trump.
$TRUMP doesn’t purport to hold value in the way that bitcoin or stablecoins do. Nor does $TRUMP entitle a buyer to a vote on a company’s future direction, as World Liberty’s initial token does. It does not even convey the right to own a digital cartoon of Trump. It’s a meme coin, a novelty, a bit of fun—the fun, for those who enjoy it, of paying Donald Trump.
The crypto venture was criticized by ethics experts and government watchdogs.[45] The venture and the possibility of foreign governments buying the coin and enriching Trump was highlighted as possibly violating the Constitution's foreign emoluments clause.[46] Critics said it could allow special interests and foreign governments to seek to buy influence with the president.[47]
The release of $Trump was condemned by ethics lawyers, including Adav Noti, the director of the Campaign Legal Center,[48] and Jordan Libowitz, the vice president for communications at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.[49] Nick Tomaino, a former executive at Coinbase, described Trump's ownership and the timing of the cryptocurrency as "predatory".[48] Anthony Scaramucci, a former White House Communications Director during the first Trump administration and current crypto investor, described the coin as "Idi Amin level corruption" and said that the launch of the coin was bad for the cryptocurrency industry. He added, "Now anyone in world can essentially deposit money into bank account of President of USA with a couple clicks."[50][47] Brendan Fischer, the deputy executive director at Documented, an investigative news outlet, said, "The timing of this launch cannot be a coincidence. It comes just after Trump's campaign ended, and just before he formally takes office and is fully subject to federal ethics rules."[51] With the coin having slumped in value as of the end of early February 2025, the circumstances around the coin have led to wide condemnation from ethics experts and concerns over conflicts of interest as well as allegations from members of Congress that have called for an investigation.[52][53][54]
Some analysts described it as a pump and dump scheme,[55] and a "disaster".[56] A forensic analysis commissioned by The New York Times concluded that 813,294 wallets lost $2 billion by trading the coin while the president's company and partners profited about $100 million from trading fees.[57][58] According to Fortune, "Less than three weeks after its release, President Donald Trump's memecoin has produced more losers than winners. For every dollar in trading fees the Trump crypto creators raked in, investors lost $20."[57]
Representative Sam Liccardo, a Democrat who represents Silicon Valley, introduced the Modern Emoluments and Malfeasance Enforcement Act (MEME Act), which would prohibit the issuance or endorsement of any financial asset by the president, senior White House officials, or members of Congress, or their spouses or children. Unlike the Hatch Act, it would introduce a private right of action for anyone harmed by purchasing such assets.[59]
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$Melania
After the launch of the $Trump memecoin, Trump's wife Melania launched her own meme coin, $Melania on January 19, 2025.[45]
The launch of the $Melania token was partially handled by Hayden Davis, who later played a key role in orchestrating the $Libra cryptocurrency scandal.[60] Davis admitted to his involvement in "sniping" the $Melania and $Libra tokens, an illegal practice similar to front running.[61]
In April 2025, blockchain data provider Bubblemaps reported that the $Melania token had been largely sold-off, where a $2 million extraction was made by Davis from $Melania's liquidity pools, sending $1 million to exchanges via single-sided liquidity.[62]
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See also
- Donald Trump's stance on cryptocurrencies
- Trump Rebate Banking system, fraudulent products that use Trump's name and likeness
- World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance project linked with the family of Donald Trump
References
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External links
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