Melania Trump has launched her own cryptocurrency token to rival her husband's newly unveiled "meme coin," briefly causing the latter's price to plummet.
"The Official Melania Meme is live!" the incoming First Lady posted to X on Sunday. "You can buy $MELANIA now." The coin also came with a statement that the token was not intended as an investment opportunity.
Newsweek has contacted Melania Trump via the Melaniameme.com website email, and will update this article if a response is received.
Why It Matters
The popularity and price of both $TRUMP and $MELANIA have surged since their launch, with trading volume boosted by Trump's imminent inauguration, while also riding a wider wave of market optimism and the belief that the incoming administration will be the most crypto-friendly in history.
The launch of the potentially highly volatile tokens has sparked numerous ethical concerns, centered around whether the Trump and his family should be cashing in on his raised profile ahead of assuming the presidency. Newsweek has reached out to President-elect Trump's office for comment.
What To Know
Prior to the $MELANIA announcement, the price of $TRUMP—the cryptocurrency launched by the president-elect on Friday—had reached nearly $75. Within hours of Melania's post, however, it had shed nearly half of its value, bottoming out at just over $38. The overall market cap of $TRUMP also dropped by 55 percent within a few minutes, according to crypto.news.
The price of the token is now sitting at $49.5 as of 7:50 a.m. ET, while $MELANIA is currently changing hands at $8.50, having peaked at $13.50 a few hours earlier following a strong post-launch buying frenzy. According to Axios on Sunday, the coin now accounts for around 89 percent of the president-elect's net worth.
Similar "meme" coins—cryptocurrencies without intrinsic financial utility and inspired by popular culture references or notable individuals—have historically shown extreme volatility, undermining their viability as dependable investments, while also opening the door for price manipulation.
The websites of both coins include disclaimers stating that these are not intended as investment opportunities, $TRUMP stating that these function "as an expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol "$TRUMP" and the associated artwork."
The terms and conditions of both websites also include waivers, prohibiting buyers from bringing class action lawsuits against the companies behind the coins.
Both coins are hosted on the Solana blockchain, and are majority owned by a small number of entities.
"CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of The Trump Organization, and Fight Fight Fight LLC collectively own 80% of the Trump Cards," according to the $TRUMP website.
Meanwhile, crypto analysis organization Bubblemaps found that 89 percent of $MELANIA was owned by a single wallet, contrary to what is stated on the ownership distribution chart on the website. Bubblemaps later reported that this had been split into four wallets holding 30 percent, 30 percent, 20 percent and six percent, respectively.
What People Are Saying
Avinash Shekhar, co-founder and CEO of Indian trading platform Pi42, in comments to NEWS 18: "The rise of speculative assets such as the TRUMP and MELANIA memecoins diverts liquidity and increases market volatility," said Avinash Shekhar, co-founder and CEO of Pi42.
Gettrumpmemes.com, the official website of Trump's newly launched coin: "Now, you can get your piece of history. This Trump Meme celebrates a leader who doesn't back down, no matter the odds," the website reads.
Anthony Scaramucci, Former White House Communications Director and co-host of The Rest is Politics podcast, via X: "Launch of Melania coin is causing Trump coin to crash. Elon was right, we are living in a simulation. Which one of the kids coins will perform best? The day before inauguration as leader of free world and this is what Trump is focused on. Tells you everything you need to know."
What Happens Next?
Trump's inauguration ceremony is set to commence at 11:30 ET. Once in office, the president-elect has vowed to make his the most pro-crypto administration in history.
The prices of other major cryptocurrencies have also experienced a boom ahead of inauguration day, Bitcoin pushing further over the $100k mark, and now hovering at around $108,000 as of early Monday morning.
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