Trump launches his own cryptocurrencies ahead of his inauguration, raising ethical alarms

Melania Trump launched her own cryptocurrency on Sunday on the eve of her husband’s inauguration as president, just one day after launching his own cryptocurrency — moves that raise ethical concerns among cryptocurrency industry observers.

“The official Melania meme has gone live! You can buy Melania now,” the incoming First Lady tweeted Written on X.

Donald Trump launched his own meme coin, $TRUMP, on saturdayIt bears pictures of the attempt on his life in July.

Trump’s coin value rose to nearly $11 billion in market cap on Monday morning, according to Cryptocurrency data platform CoinMarketCap, which could inflate his net worth by billions. Meanwhile, the market value of Melania’s dollar reached $1.7 billion a few hours before the inauguration.

Nearly 80 percent of Trump Coin tokens are owned by CIC Digital, a subsidiary of Trump’s business, and another entity called Fight, Fight, Fight, according to its website. She says the coins are “an expression of support and engagement with the ideals and beliefs embodied by the $TRUMP token, and are not an investment or security.”

The launch caused surprise and concern even among those in the cryptocurrency industry, some of whom criticized the Trump family for… once again Leverage his presidency by launching a profitable commercial product that benefits him and his family.

“While it is tempting to dismiss this as just another Trump spectacle, the launch of an official Trump token opens a Pandora’s box of ethical and regulatory questions,” said Justin Denithan, an independent cryptocurrency analyst based in Hong Kong.

“Should public figures, especially those with such political influence, exercise this kind of influence in speculative markets? This is a question that regulators are unlikely to ignore,” he said.

Anthony Scaramucci, the former Trump White House communications director who is now also a frequent critic criticize Move on X.

“Now anyone in the world can deposit money into the bank account of the President of the United States of America with a few clicks,” he wrote. “Every favor – geopolitical, corporate or personal – is now up for sale, right in the open.”

Trump is an enthusiastic supporter of cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrencies are a type of digital money that can be used to pay for things in the online world, and meme currencies – which are often volatile – are a type of cryptocurrency that is usually based on internet jokes.

Bitcoin, one of the most popular cryptocurrencies, rose after Trump won the election. The currency rose again to a record high ahead of his inauguration, having jumped more than 10 percent so far this month.

The incoming president has been an ardent supporter of cryptocurrencies, indicating during his election campaign that he would release a strategic reserve of Bitcoin, and with many in the crypto space, he hopes to do so. Undo regulations From the emerging industry.

Trump appointed venture capitalist David O. Sachs became the country’s first cryptocurrency official, and became the first presidential candidate to accept cryptocurrencies as a valid form of donation to his campaign.

Bloomberg Reports That Trump may use an executive order to designate cryptocurrencies as a “national priority” after his inauguration on Monday. It also has strong support from the industry, with cryptocurrency companies such as Ripple, Robinhood, and Coinbase After donating To his inaugural box.

But the president-elect hasn’t always been interested in digital assets: Trump previously called bitcoin a “scam” in 2021, and lamented that it was competing with and affecting the value of the US dollar.