Launched on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration TRUMP tokens and MELANIA caused a frenzy in the crypto market, but then the coins experienced a sharp drop in value. According to CoinMarketCap data, the price of TRUMP fell by 60% in the first 24 hours after the inauguration, and MELANIA lost half of its value. Currently, the market capitalization of meme coins is $8 billion (was $15 billion) and $735 million (was $2.2 billion), respectively.
The total trading volume of the crypto market in the last 24 hours amounted to $227 billion, which means a decrease by 41.32%.
Anthony Scaramucci, founder of Skybridge Capital and former White House Communications Director, characterized Trump’s meme coins as “gamble tokens”:
“Our society will always have gambling, alcohol, and tobacco. But tokens from a political figure of such scale are a potential ‘Pandora’s box’ for regulators”.
Scaramucci also expressed concern that retail investors will be “left empty-handed” due to high volatility. Indeed, the network is already spreading depressive posts about who and how much money was lost by buying tokens at the peak of value counting on further growth.
The launch of such political meme coins signals a change in governments’ approach to cryptocurrencies. As noted by analyst Gautam Chhagani from Bernstein:
“TRUMP marks the beginning of a new regulatory era, where cryptocurrencies become a tool for governments to interact with the population”.
However, traders are still optimistic about the prospects of meme coins and Trump’s overall policy in the cryptosphere. Analysts at QCP Capital noted that the launch of TRUMP on the Solana blockchain was an important signal for the development of this ecosystem, as well as a possible impetus for the faster approval of ETFs on SOL.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin rose to a historical high of $109 thousand on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration, but open interest decreased by $2 billion. The price fell to $102 thousand. All because during his speech the new US president did not say the magic word “bitcoin”. The market reaction indicates traders’ reluctance to open new positions at current levels, which could signal a potential correction phase (get ready to short or buy back).
XRP almost reached a historical high, reaching a mark of $3.34 thanks to positive news in the Ripple case against the SEC and expectations for the launch of cryptocurrency ETFs.
Solana (SOL) set a new record at $275 amid the launch of Trump tokens, which caused significant speculative demand on the Solana blockchain.
Due to fears of intensified digital surveillance, caused by possible tariffs and a ban on TikTok, demand for private coins is increasing. Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Dash (DASH) showed moderate growth, becoming the most profitable sector among altcoins.