US president Donald Trump's "meme coin" $TRUMP fell about 8% in five minutes in late September 2025, wiping millions off its value. Users can buy and sell this cryptocurrency , inspired by an internet meme, on the open market.
Author
- Thomas Gift
Associate Professor and Director of the Centre on US Politics, UCL
Shortly before retaking office, Trump had posted on X : "My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It's time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING!" Below the post was a drawing of Trump with the words "FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT" - an allusion to his assassination attempt.
Soon after that announcement came the creation of the $MELANIA coin, named after the first lady, which also slid on the markets in late September 2025.
There are concerns that these and other crypto businesses the president and his family are involved with are creating an unprecedented ethical minefield - blurring the line between private profit and public office.
The personal profit Trump might receive from these meme coins is unclear. The website gettrumpmemes.com suggests that while the product is endorsed by the president, it has "nothing to do with any political campaign". The Trump Organization, a holding company for Trump's business ventures, and Fight Fight Fight LLC own 80% of the coins, it states.
But critics such as Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren worry that Trump could be leveraging the presidency to add to his family's wealth. Norman Eisen, a former ethics adviser to President Barack Obama, has argued that Trump's crypto dealings may be "the single worst conflict of interest in the modern history of the presidency".
One inquiry by the New York Times into Trump's budding crypto empire contended that it has "erased centuries-old presidential norms, eviscerating the boundary between private enterprise and government policy in a manner without precedent in modern American history".
In response to allegations that Trump has profited off interests while in the Oval Office, his assistant press secretary, Anna Kelly, released a statement saying his assets are "in a trust managed by his children", and that there was not a conflict of interest.
In May, Democratic senator Jeff Merkeley (Oregon) introduced a bill for an end crypto corruption act , which would ban the president and other senior officials from "issuing, endorsing or sponsoring crypto assets". The bill is pending with mostly Democrat support, so it is unlikely to pass the Republican-controlled House and Senate.
A family affair
Trump's forays into crypto are a family affair. His sons Don Jr, Eric and Barron founded World Liberty Financial (WLFI) in September 2024, months before Trump was inaugurated a second time.
The president was originally listed as its "chief crypto advocate", although his title on the website has since changed to "co-founder emeritus". The site states this happened when he took office.
Apart from his sons, WLFI includes in the team listed on its website Trump's chief Middle East envoy and negotiator, Steven Witkoff, and Witkoff's son Zach.
According to the Trumps, WLFI was founded as "the start of a financial revolution" destined to make crypto more user-friendly. Yet critics say it represents an opportunity for the president to benefit financially, because of his involvement with the firm.
More concerns were raised when its crypto coin, the WLFI token, started trading in September 2025, reaching a high of about 40 cents per coin - hugely expanding the Trump family's wealth.
Eric Trump also recently founded American Bitcoin. According to a press release , this firm will mine and hoard the world's most valuable cryptocurrency, bitcoin, as well as capitalise on "opportunistic bitcoin purchases". Upon its stock debut, estimates were that the Trump sons' stake in American Bitcoin totalled around US$1.5 billion (£1.12 billion).
Trump's crypto history
Formerly a crypto sceptic, Trump once said he was "not a fan" of bitcoin. Yet just before re-taking office, he declared that he wanted to make the US "the crypto capital of the planet".
An early sign of Trump's interest in crypto came when he spoke to a standing-room only crowd at bitcoin's annual conference in Nashville, Tennessee in July 2024, becoming the first major presidential candidate to do so.
As America's chief law enforcement officer, Trump helps set and enforce crypto policy - precisely the arena where his family's businesses now operate. According to one report, the Trump family's wealth in crypto, at least on paper, has surpassed US$5 billion - a number that now exceeds Trump's vast real estate portfolio.
The emoluments clauses were created in the US constitution in 1789 to protect presidents from corrupting influences, and prohibit US leaders from accepting gifts from foreign governments. But they are now considered by some to need updating.
This concern isn't hypothetical. In May 2025, Freight Technologies (Fr8Tech), a Nasdaq-listed firm based in Mexico, announced it would raise as much as US$20 million to purchase $TRUMP meme coins.
Against the backdrop of the US raising tariffs on Mexico, Fr8Tech CEO Javier Selgas said the deal was both economically and politically advantageous , explaining: "We believe that the addition of the Official Trump tokens [is] an effective way to advocate for fair, balanced, and free trade between Mexico and the US."
By purchasing Trump's meme coin, a firm such as Fr8Tech can both support the Trump family's financial interests and hope to gain favourable treatment on trade policy. More concerns were raised when Trump hosted a black-tie dinner at his club in Virginia for the largest $TRUMP holders.
Trump's crypto credentials
Trump has been the most crypto-friendly president ever. In March, he signed an executive order to create a national bitcoin strategic reserve - a government stockpile of the asset he has framed as a symbol of US dominance in the digital asset space. Moreover, Trump's AI and crypto czar, David Sacks, has presided over historic pronouncements to improve the regulatory "rules of the road" for cryptocurrencies.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission, an executive branch agency that regulates markets, has moved to being pro-crypto under Trump, casting aside the approach of the Joe Biden era. This has included dropping legal suits against high-profile crypto firms such as Coinbase.
But while the Trump family benefits financially from its rising investment in crypto , this could yet prove a Pyrrhic victory. If Democrats wrest control of the House of Representatives in the 2026 midterms, they could use it to scrutinise the president's crypto entanglements - and highlight concerns about presidential conflicts of interest.
Thomas Gift holds shares in Bitcoin financial instruments.
Risk Warning: Cryptocurrency is a unregulated virtual notoriously volatile instrument with a high level of risk. Any news, opinions, research, data, or other information contained within this website is provided for news reporting purposes as general market commentary and does not constitute investment or trading advice.
