Trump and Melania’s meme coins shake up crypto markets

On the weekend prior to his inauguration, President-elect Donald Trump was the talk of the town with the launch of his meme coin, $TRUMP, on the Solana blockchain. Within 48 hours, the coin’s value skyrocketed, with a peak market cap of $15.02 billion. Trump announced the launch via his official X account.

A few hours later, incoming first lady Melania Trump launches her own crypto coin, $MELANIA, with a peak market cap of $2.21B.

What does this mean for the cryptocurrency market?

Circulating supply: 200 million tokens, which stand for 20% of the total supply, are currently in circulation, with the remaining 80% locked for three years.
Unrealized profit: At its peak, Trump’s on-paper wealth surged by $60 billion, surpassing crypto legends like Sam Bankman-Fried and even Satoshi Nakamoto’s early Bitcoin wallet profits.
Market impact: The coin’s valuation exceeds major companies like Target, Hilton, and General Motors, raising questions about the sustainability of such meteoric growth.

What are meme coins?
Meme coins, like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, are crypto assets driven by internet culture, humor, and speculation rather than intrinsic value. Despite their high volatility and lack of utility, their global appeal and accessibility make them popular among retail investors.

What’s the bigger picture?
The launch of these coins highlights the growing influence of meme coins, with celebrities and influencers leveraging their cultural capital to engage audiences. This phenomenon could further boost the adoption of meme coins and platforms like Solana, which hosted the $TRUMP and $MELANIA launches.

While meme coins remain controversial, their ability to blend social media and brand recognition continues to reshape the crypto landscape.

Prepared by Nour Hammoury, Chief Market Analyst at SquaredFinancial
Nour is an investor, independent market strategist, and financial advisor. He holds a BA in Finance and Banking Science from Al-Ahliyya Amman University and a CFTe in Economics from the International Federation of Technical Analysts. He has more than 15 years of experience in forex, stocks, and global economic developments, as well as central bank policies and intermarket analysis. He appears regularly on major international TV networks, such as BBC, Al-Jazeera, Al Hurra, CNBC, and Bloomberg, holding open discussions and sharing insights and readings of the markets and trends.

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