Fake Trump Coins Flood the Market as Traders Seek Official Launches

Both TRUMP and MELANIA tokens were endorsed by the Trump family and launched on the Solana network ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration. However, criticism from people like Rep. Maxine Waters caused some concern over transparency and investor risks associated with the meme coins. Meanwhile, World Liberty Financial, another Trump-endorsed project, made large crypto purchases just ahead of the inauguration. Despite optimism from people like Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire about pro-crypto policies under Trump, his inauguration speech and priorities completely excluded digital assets.

Traders Hunt for the Next Trump-Themed Crypto

The launch of Trump-branded meme coins recently created a frenzy among traders, especially after President Donald Trump’s Official Trump (TRUMP) token briefly jumped past $80 billion in fully-diluted value (FDV) on its first day, Jan. 18. This surge caused a hunt for additional Trump-themed tokens, though the crypto space is currently littered with fakes.

Only one other token, Official Melania (MELANIA), received the Trump family’s endorsement. Referencing First Lady Melania Trump, MELANIA reached an FDV of $14 billion before retreating to under $6 billion in Jan, 20. 

MELANIA price action over the past 24 hours (Source: CoinMarketCap)

In contrast, unofficial tokens like Official Barron Meme (BARRON) saw very volatile performances, with BARRON peaking at $400 million before losing over 90% of its value. Despite their origins, many imitators transferred Trump-themed tokens to the crypto wallet linked to CIC Digital LLC, the Trump entity that holds 80% of Official Trump’s (TRUMP) total supply. Some of these tokens, including the purported Official Ivanka Trump coin, claim valuations in the hundreds of millions.

The Trump family’s involvement also fueled a lot of speculation about future meme coins. While Eric Trump dismissed rumors of a “USA coin” as the next official project, crypto influencer Kook mentioned potential launches tied to Barron and Eric Trump.

The TRUMP token debuted on Jan. 18, and was quickly followed by the MELANIA token on Jan. 19. Both were launched on the Solana network, just ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20. People were initially skeptical that the launches were part of social media hacks, but Trump’s team later confirmed their authenticity, driving up the tokens’ prices. 

Maxine Waters Slams Trump Meme Coin

While traders are in a frenzy to find more Trump-linked tokens, not everyone is very impressed about the meme coin fiasco. California Representative Maxine Waters, the leading Democrat on the US House Financial Services Committee, criticized President Donald Trump’s launch of the TRUMP token, and alleged that it undermines the legitimacy of the cryptocurrency industry. 

(Source: US House Committee on Financial Services)

In a statement on Jan. 20, Rep. Waters described the TRUMP token as an example of “the worst of crypto,” due to her concerns over its lack of transparency and its potential to enable anonymous transactions that could circumvent national security and anti-corruption laws. She also warned that investors could face large losses if insiders sold their holdings, and compared the token to a rug pull. The token’s terms and conditions, which reportedly block class-action lawsuits, is also cause for concern.

Rep. Waters is also worried that the actions surrounding the TRUMP token will tarnish the reputation of the broader cryptocurrency industry, which has been fighting hard for legitimacy and regulatory clarity. While several executives from major crypto firms were present at Trump’s inauguration events, the president still has to address digital assets or blockchain technology since taking office on Jan. 20. Many people in the crypto space could not help but notice that his acceptance speech and list of initial priorities completely excluded cryptocurrency-related issues.

Contrary to his earlier promises, Trump has not signed any executive orders that will establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve or commute the life sentence of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. These omissions, along with the backlash against his meme coin, fueled a lot of criticism from lawmakers and crypto advocates.

World Liberty Financial Buys Millions in Crypto

World Liberty Financial, the decentralized finance (DeFi) project linked to the Trump family, also made large cryptocurrency purchases shortly before President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20. According to Arkham Intelligence, the project’s wallet bought $46.8 million in Ethereum (ETH) and $46.7 million in wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC) in four hours. The transactions were often more than $4 million per transaction. The buying spree also included smaller tokens like Ethena (ENA), wrapped Tron (wTRX), Chainlink (LINK), Aave (AAVE), and Uniswap (UNI). The transactions were conducted through the decentralized exchange CoW.

These acquisitions bring the wallet’s total crypto holdings to $329.3 million, with ETH, USD Coin (USDC), and wBTC comprising the bulk of its value. 

WLF crypto holdings (Source: Arkham Intelligence)

On Jan. 20, the project announced that it sold 20% of its 100 billion token supply and released an additional 5% with a 230% markup. Speculation about the project’s future grew after news surfaced that it purchased Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domains for Trump family members, which fueled rumors about even more Trump-themed meme coins.

World Liberty Financial is led by Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro, who previously worked on Dough Finance. The Trump family actively endorsed the project, and President Trump served as “chief crypto advocate.” Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. were appointed as Web3 ambassadors. 

Circle CEO Predicts Trump Pro-Crypto Executive Order

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire is very optimistic that President Donald Trump may soon sign an executive order to facilitate banks’ ownership of digital assets. At the Reuters Global Markets Forum during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Allaire suggested that pro-crypto orders could be issued imminently, although he did not specify an exact timeline. His comments were made amid the ongoing debates about the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SECs) Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 121, which prevents financial institutions from holding cryptocurrencies on their balance sheets.

Despite Congress voting to overturn SAB 121, the resolution was vetoed by former President Joe Biden. He stated that his administration will not support measures that might jeopardize consumer and investor protection. Critics, including Allaire, argue that SAB 121 is designed to slow down the adoption of digital assets rather than actually protect investors. Allaire described the bulletin as punitive due to its impact on banks, financial institutions, and corporations.

Circle is the company behind the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin, and it donated $1 million in USDC to Trump’s inauguration committee, which certainly proves Allaire’s hopes for more crypto-friendly policies under the new administration. However, Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration speech did not mention digital assets at all, and focused instead on topics like immigration and tariffs. The president also introduced a proposal for an “External Revenue Service” to collect tariffs from foreign sources.

The crypto market experienced a lot of volatility on the day of the inauguration as well. Bitcoin reached an all-time high of over $109,000 before correcting to $103,300. Crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) saw $2.2 billion in inflows last week, driven by expectations surrounding Trump’s presidency. Bitcoin ETPs accounted for $1.9 billion of that total, contributing to $2.7 billion in net inflows for Bitcoin funds so far this year, according to CoinShares data.