On the eve of her husband’s inauguration as the 45th president of the United States, Melania Trump, the incoming first lady, introduced her own cryptocurrency.
This move follows the launch of the $Trump cryptocurrency by President-elect Donald Trump. Both digital currencies have experienced an increase in value, although their trading has been volatile.
Melania Trump made the announcement via a post on the social media platform X, saying, “The Official Melania Meme is live! You can now purchase $MELANIA.”
The official website for the “Official Melania Meme” states that the crypto asset is based on the Solana blockchain.
Both the $Trump and $Melania coins include disclaimers on their websites, emphasizing that they are not designed as investment opportunities or securities.
As per CoinMarketCap, $Trump currently holds a market valuation of about $12 billion, while $Melania is valued at approximately $1.7 billion.
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Despite having previously labeled cryptocurrency as a “scam,” Donald Trump became the first presidential candidate to accept digital assets for campaign donations during the 2024 election. He also announced plans to stockpile bitcoin and appoint financial regulators who would foster a more favorable environment for digital currencies.
This stance raised expectations that he would reduce regulations on the cryptocurrency industry.
Following Trump’s electoral victory, the price of bitcoin surged to an all-time high and is currently trading at around $107,000, according to the Coinbase platform.
On the same day, David Sacks, a newly appointed advisor on AI and cryptocurrency, hosted a “Crypto Ball” in Washington, DC.
Other digital currencies, such as dogecoin promoted by Trump supporter Elon Musk have also seen significant increases this year.
In contrast, under President Joe Biden’s administration, regulators have focused on combatting fraud and money laundering, resulting in a crackdown on crypto companies and the filing of lawsuits against various exchanges.
