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The launch of Donald Trump and his wife Melania’s meme coins has sparked a record crypto rally that has seen the market surge by more than half a trillion dollars in the past week – but both tokens are already seeing extreme price volatility.
The new First Lady, who will enter the White House on Monday, launched a cryptocurrency on Sunday, just a day after her husband released his own $TRUMP meme coin. They have a combined market capitalization of more than $10 billion, although that is down from the weekend’s high of $16 billion.
Positioning himself as the first-ever pro-crypto US president, Trump pledged to introduce a number of policies that could continue to benefit the market, spurring bitcoin to hit a new all-time high just hours before his inauguration.
Yet despite this positive momentum, some experts have issued warnings regarding the latest meme coins and their potential impact on the market.
What is a meme coin?
As the name suggests, meme pieces are usually based on a joke or trend that has no inherent value. The very first coin, Dogecoin, was launched in 2013 as an “ironic cryptocurrency” that mocked the emerging Bitcoin boom.
Since then, thousands of cryptocurrencies have been launched, based on everything from baby hippos to the “Hawk Tuah girl.”
The $MELANIA and $TRUMP websites describe the tokens as meme coins, but say they are not designed to be an investment opportunity or part of a political campaign.
“Melania memes are digital collectibles intended to function as an expression of support and commitment to the values embodied in the MELANIA symbol and associated artwork, and are not intended to be, or to the subject of an investment opportunity, of an investment contract. , or security of any type,” indicates the $MELANIA site.
Financial advisors also urged caution over the two new tokens, citing market volatility in 2021 and 2022, when the meme coin trend first exploded in popularity.
“Let’s be very clear: this is more about gambling than investing,” said Nigel Green, chief executive of financial consultancy deVere Group. The Independent.
“It is important to distinguish between speculative coins and legitimate digital assets that provide real value and utility… This is not the same as investing in hard assets. Gambling is not the same as investing.
How will the crypto market react to Trump’s presidency
Crypto market experts attributed the record rally to the upcoming inauguration of the first-ever pro-crypto president, spurred by the launch of meme coins $TRUMP and $MELANIA.
“This growth was driven by the successful launch of meme-coins associated with Trump and his wife Melania, whose substantial capitalization growth had a positive impact on the overall market,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, an analyst at Chief Marketer at FxPro.
Other industry figures have warned of continued market volatility due to the new administration, with a positive price trend expected to continue – but only if Trump keeps his promise to be a pro-crypto president.
Trump’s promises include appointing a pro-crypto chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and creating a strategic bitcoin reserve from the large stockpile of cryptocurrencies built up through seizures governmental. This would further tighten Bitcoin’s limited supply, while potentially incentivizing other countries to do the same.
Speaking at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville last July, Trump told the crowd: “For too long, our government has violated the cardinal rule that every bitcoiner knows by heart: Never sell you bitcoin. »
If it fails to meet these commitments, the crypto market could suffer a catastrophic collapse that could rival the losses suffered in previous downturns. The first victims would most likely be meme coins $TRUMP and $MELANIA, although any positive announcements regarding the crypto market could see them further strengthened.
““BTC’s buildup in near-term volatility highlights growing uncertainty and excitement as traders prepare for potentially large price movements related to the inauguration,” said Dr. Sean Dawson, head of research on the decentralized platform Derive.xyz.
“The positive launches of $TRUMP and $MELANIA tokens over the weekend show the pro-crypto tone of the new administration, which could further strengthen sentiment in the space.”
