The Announcement and Market Reaction of the $TRUMP Memecoin

On January 18, Trump shared an enthusiastic message on his X account, declaring, “My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It’s time to celebrate everything we stand for

On January 18, former US President Donald Trump announced the launch of his official Trump Meme coin ($TRUMP) via his X and Truth Social accounts. The announcement quickly garnered attention, and the newly minted token began trading at $30.35, achieving a market capitalization of $8.3 billion within hours.

However, the launch of the meme coin has also raised concerns among members of the crypto community. Many initially questioned whether the posts announcing the $TRUMP launch were authentic or the result of a hack. Others expressed skepticism about the meme coin, which was being promoted on Trump’s social media.

Despite the initial skepticism, it has been confirmed that the launch was authentic, with CIC Digital, the official licensee behind Trump’s NFT projects, being involved in the project. The $TRUMP token website also bears similarities to the sites that promoted Trump’s previous NFT collections.

However, there are some red flags regarding the transparency of the project. CIC Digital holds 80% of the token’s supply, which is subject to a three-year unlocking period. This raises concerns about potential market manipulation and the lack of decentralization typically associated with successful cryptocurrencies.

The launch of the meme coin had a significant impact on the Solana blockchain, where $TRUMP is hosted. The price of Solana (SOL) rose by 17.17% to $253 as the launch of the token generated widespread interest. This launch has brought Solana into the spotlight once again.

Trump’s involvement in the crypto space has been a point of interest and contention in the past. During his administration, his officials took a more conservative stance on cryptocurrency regulation, making the potential second term with Trump even more ambiguous for the market. Additionally, his earlier venture into the NFT space — the sale of Trump-themed digital trading cards — also raised questions about how seriously he takes cryptocurrencies.

As the launch of $TRUMP continues to unfold and the inauguration approaches, the crypto community is eagerly awaiting more details to determine whether the memecoin is a legitimate effort by Trump’s team or another speculative scheme. This intersection of politics and cryptocurrency is bound to generate both intrigue and uncertainty.