Trump launches surprise meme coin just before inauguration and price soars

By Clive McKeefThe move is the latest in a long list of crypto-related businesses and products linked to TrumpPresident-elect Donald Trump launched his own meme coin early Saturday morning, catching the crypto market by surprise ahead of his inauguration on Monday, and the coin's market capitalization immediately soared.The coin's value surged within hours with the price soaring to over $30 Saturday morning, according to CoinMarketCap.The coin was launched with announcements on both Trump's Twitter and Truth Social accounts.The $TRUMP coin features the slogan "Fight, fight, fight!," and claims to represent "everything we stand for: WINNING!" The coin draws inspiration from Trump's election campaign rally slogan, "Fight, Fight, Fight," reportedly shouted after he survived an assassination attempt in July 2024.Some traders on social media platforms expressed doubt about the validity of the posts, suggesting Trump's accounts were hacked and being used to sell a fraudulent token that would soon get withdrawn, but the posts remain on the platforms and there has been no statement from Trump indicating there is a problem, according to CoinDesk.Built on the Solana network, the $TRUMP token has a total supply capped at 1 billion coins, with 200 million available initially, according to the official website. However, 80% of the supply is held by Trump Organization affiliate CIC Digital, and a CIC co-owned entity called Fight Fight Fight LLC which are subject to a three-year unlocking schedule, meaning they cannot sell all of their holdings at once.CIC Digital LLC has previously overseen the sale of Trump-branded NFTs, sneakers, and other merchandise. CIC Digital reportedly generated over $7 million in licensing revenue last year, leveraging Trump's name across various products.The move is the latest in a long list of crypto-related businesses and products linked to Trump after he previously issued multiple NFTs and the decentralized finance platform World Liberty Financial.A disclaimer on the meme's website stated that the Trump meme tokens were intended to function as an "expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol $TRUMP" and are not "intended to be, or to be the subject of, an investment opportunity, investment contract, or security of any type."-Clive McKeefThis content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.