Melania Trump Launches Cryptocurrency Meme Coin $MELANIA, Coinciding with a Surge in Digital Currencies as Trump Prepares for His Return to the White House

Melania Trump, the incoming First Lady of the United States, has followed her husband's example by launching a multibillion-dollar cryptocurrency meme coin

Melania Trump has launched her own cryptocurrency, coinciding with a surge in digital currencies as her husband prepares for his return to the White House.

On January 20, Melania introduced her cryptocurrency, which was trading at approximately $9.6 with a market capitalisation of $1.85 billion as of 12:30 GMT, according to CoinMarketCap.

The value of the incoming president’s token, $TRUMP, surged to over $70 (£57), bringing its total worth to more than $14 billion shortly after its launch on January 17. However, the debut of Melania’s coin, $Melania, dampened those gains as investors shifted their focus to her rival token.

According to CoinGecko, on paper, the Trump tokens in the market had a total trading value of nearly $13 billion before $MELANIA launched and were, until that time, the 19th most valuable form of crypto in the world.

On January 20, Bitcoin, the world’s most recognized digital currency, reached a new record high of $109,241, marking an increase of more than 5%. Dogecoin, promoted by Trump-supporting billionaire Elon Musk as the “people’s crypto,” rose nearly 5%, while Ethereum gained 3.5%, reaching $3,384.

Trump launched the digital token, which featured branding including an image from his July assassination attempt, expanding his cryptocurrency portfolio that already includes World Liberty Financial. According to the token's website, 80% of the total number of tokens are owned by CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of Trump’s business empire, The Trump Organization, and another entity named Fight Fight Fight LLC.

“While it’s tempting to dismiss this as just another Trump spectacle, the launch of the official Trump token opens up a Pandora’s box of ethical and regulatory questions,” said Justin D'Anethan, an independent crypto analyst in Hong Kong, in a comment to Reuters.

He explained that while the coin represents a fusion of decentralized finance (DeFi) with the political sphere, it also “blurs the lines between governance, profit, and influence”.

“Should public figures, especially those with such political power, wield this kind of influence in speculative markets? That’s a question regulators are unlikely to ignore,” he added.

Trump has pledged to be a “crypto president” and is expected to sign executive orders aimed at reducing regulatory hurdles for cryptocurrency and promoting widespread adoption of digital assets.

Crypto is not regulated like stocks or insured like real money in banks. Crypto's high risks can offer big rewards or huge losses. Crypto is not protected or regulated like cash or the US dollar. Crypto is volatile and a substantial risk.

Market manipulation remains a substantial problem in cryptocurrency, with influential people, organizations, and exchanges acting unethically.

(With inputs from agencies)