Donald Trump unveils his own cryptocurrency

Donald Trump unveiled his $TRUMP meme coin on Friday, sending shockwaves through the cryptocurrency world.

Built on the Solana blockchain, the token quickly soared to prominence, with its market capitalization skyrocketing to USD 14.5 billion just hours after its release.

Initially priced at USD 0.18, the coin experienced an extraordinary surge, peaking at USD 21.51 by the end of the day—a staggering 231.61 percent increase, according to CoinMarketCap.

The announcement came via Trump’s Truth Social platform, where he declared: "My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It's time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING!"

Trump encouraged supporters to secure their tokens from the official website before the 48-hour claiming window closed.

The launch generated a frenzy among traders. Within an hour, trading volumes reached nearly USD 1 billion, and early investors capitalized on the rapid price jumps. One notable trader turned a USD 1.1 million investment in nearly 6 million $TRUMP coins into USD 23 million within 90 seconds. Even after selling a portion, the investor retained over 5.4 million coins, reflecting a profit of more than USD 20 million.

The coin’s supply is capped at 1 billion tokens, with 200 million released during the initial phase. The remaining tokens are set to roll out over the next three years. However, the ownership structure has drawn scrutiny—80 percent of the tokens are held by CIC Digital LLC, a Trump Organisation subsidiary, and Fight Fight Fight LLC, a Delaware-based entity.