The "Trump Coin Incident": Four Important Crypto Lessons

U.S. President Trump issued the official "Presidential Coin" TRUMP, and within less than two days, its market value exceeded $80 billion.

On January 18, 2024, at 10:18 AM (EST), former U.S. President Donald Trump announced the launch of his own cryptocurrency, named TRUMP, via his official Twitter account. The token was quickly listed on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and began trading.

Within two days, TRUMP's market value soared to over $80 billion, according to Coinmarketcap data. This event, dubbed the "Trump Coin Incident" by cryptocurrency enthusiasts, marked a significant turning point in the industry, accelerating the shift from centralized exchanges (CEXs) to DEXs.

As a participant and observer in this event, I began monitoring TRUMP's price movements from 10:50 AM on January 18, when the token was valued at around $3 billion, to the evening of January 19, when it reached $80 billion. I also engaged in extensive discussions with other cryptocurrency practitioners throughout this period.

Here are some key observations and lessons learned from the "Trump Coin Incident":

1. Opportunities Lie On-Chain: Those who actively engaged with DEX products like Phantom and Jupiter had a higher chance of discovering the TRUMP opportunity early on. Additionally, having sufficient capital on-chain was crucial for achieving optimal returns from this event.

2. Speed Matters: The TRUMP token was launched around 10 AM on January 18, with a launch price of approximately $0.18. By the evening of January 19, TRUMP peaked at $80, marking an increase of over 400 times during this period.

Those who discovered the opportunity quickly and made decisions promptly were able to acquire lower entry points. For instance, some KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders) like 0xSun, Dayu, and Yuyue were among the first traders to buy TRUMP, thanks to their habit of monitoring smart money on-chain.

3. Cognition and Tools Shape Outcomes: Some people bought TRUMP early but in small amounts and sold even earlier, while others bought late but had more capital on-chain or used cross-chain products, ultimately determining their final gains.

When TRUMP's market value was $5 billion, some were still doubting the authenticity of the event, while others were already anticipating that its market value would easily surpass Dogecoin, which was valued at over $60 billion at the time.

4. The Power of Memes: Following Trump's announcement of the coin, several "crypto influencers" criticized him for using his influence for personal gain and argued that memes only have PVP (Play-versus-Play) attributes and no real value.

However, memes seem to offer a relatively fair way to issue assets, especially in an environment where listing on major CEXs entails high costs, insider information, and contract pinning issues. Additionally, some large public chains incur marketing expenses of tens of millions of dollars annually, leading to complex interest groups and high entry barriers for new entrepreneurs.

Before the narrative of AI Agents emerged, memes appeared to lack valuable application scenarios. However, with the advent of AI Agents, people realized that memes are essentially a form of technical product, and their use depends on the people involved, not the memes themselves.

These are just a few of the many lessons that can be drawn from the "Trump Coin Incident." The event, which drew attention from both within and outside the cryptocurrency community, showcased the rapid growth and influence of DEXs, Solana, and memes in the industry.