Melania Meme Sparks Crypto Frenzy with Meme Coins

The day before being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump made their entrances into the cryptocurrency space with a couple of their meme coins. The tokens, named Official Trump (TRUMP) and Melania Meme (MELANIA), respectively, have split the digital asset community with feelings of excitement and controversy.

For instance, TRUMP surged threefold to over $70, giving the coin a market capitalization of more than $14 billion barely a few hours after its listing. It lost this momentum, though, when investor interest shifted to MELANIA’s launch almost immediately. The launches also disrupted the wider crypto market, leaving Bitcoin stable and altcoins struggling to claw back lost ground.

Ryan Selkis, founder of crypto analytics firm Messari and a Trump supporter, lashed out at the Melania Meme project as a case of poor execution that can also have economic and reputational implications.

Meanwhile, Anthony Scaramucci, founder of SkyBridge Capital and a brief member of Trump’s 2017 administration, criticized the Melania Meme launch for undercutting TRUMP’s success.

Though once a sceptic of cryptocurrencies, Trump has warmed up to digital assets after the industry showered him with millions in campaign contributions during the election. He wants the U.S. to be a leader in digital assets and has even floated the idea of a national Bitcoin reserve.

The launches also extended to the pre-sale of the Trump family’s wider crypto initiative, World Liberty, which has now hit its target raise. Already having over 34,000 holders at a total supply of 100 billion tokens priced at $0.015, the largest independent buyer turned out to be TRON DAO after purchasing 3 billion tokens.