Monday saw the market value of a newly minted cryptocurrency, $Trump, skyrocket to over $10 billion as Donald Trump commenced his second term as President of the United States.
The crypto, which was launched on January 20, experienced a substantial trading volume that contributed to its rapid ascent, while Bitcoin also reached a record high just hours before Trump’s inauguration.
The "meme coin," as it is colloquially known, witnessed a meteoric rise from under $10 on Saturday morning to a peak of $74.59, although it later retracted some of those gains.
The launch included branding that features an image from a July assassination attempt on Trump, marking an expansion of his ventures into the cryptocurrency space through World Liberty Financial.
In related news, Melania Trump introduced her own cryptocurrency, $MELANIA, on Sunday. It too experienced a significant price surge, quickly achieving a market capitalization exceeding $1 billion. The majority of $Trump tokens, about 80%, are held by CIC Digital, which is affiliated with Trump’s business endeavors, and another entity named Fight, Fight, Fight.
The official website for $Trump states that the coins represent "an expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol ’$TRUMP’" and clarifies that they should not be considered an investment or a security.
The crypto payment app Oobit announced that $Trump is now usable for tap payments, allowing for everyday purchases with the Solana-based memecoin.
This development was highlighted with the notion of using $Trump to pay for items at fast-food chains, such as McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD), with a tweet suggesting the ease of saying, "I’ll pay with TRUMP," at the checkout.
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