Trump’s crypto meme coin draws billions in trading volume, as bitcoin dips
Trading under the “Trump” ticker on the Solana blockchain, the token’s market value surged to US$15 billion over the weekend, data from CoinMarketCap showed, after the Republican touted it on his social media accounts on Friday.
The digital asset’s market capitalisation then slid below US$10 billion on Sunday in New York after Trump’s wife Melania also unveiled a coin, drawing traders who seek to capitalise on rapidly shifting speculative demand for memes.
Meanwhile, the wider crypto market struggled over the weekend, including a dip in the largest token, bitcoin, and a shaper retreat for second-ranked ether. SOL, the crypto asset associated with the Solana digital ledger hosting the Trump meme coins, bucked the trend and posted a rally.
The “size of the capital flowing” to the Trump token left most other coins trading “poorly” except for SOL and some related assets, said Sydney-based Richard Galvin, co-founder of hedge fund DACM.