It’s not every day that a U.S. President launches a Solana memecoin, at least, that’s what Donald Trump’s social media accounts appeared to Friday night.
Three days before his second inauguration, Trump’s official X (formerly Twitter) and Truth Social accounts shared an announcement about a new Solana-based memecoin, $TRUMP.
“My NEW Official Trump Meme is HERE! It’s time to celebrate everything we stand for: WINNING! Join my very special Trump Community. GET YOUR $TRUMP NOW,” the post read, linking to a website.
Within minutes, the cryptocurrency was trading in the hundreds of millions of dollars as excited traders rushed in, skeptics raised alarms, and blockchain sleuths got to work investigating.
Within hours, $TRUMP had a market cap of nearly $7.5 trillion.
But is the Trumps memecoin actually legit?
The evidence so far suggests two possibilities: Either this is an official launch sanctioned by Trump, or his accounts were hacked in what could be one of the most elaborate crypto scams in recent memory.
Let’s unpack the situation.
What Happened: Trump’s Solana Memecoin Moons
The announcement came late Friday night, first on Truth Social and shortly after on Trump’s X account.
Some rumors say he confirmed it during his crypto gala.
Both posts featured identical language promoting $TRUMP, alongside a link to a website that resembles those used for Trump’s past NFT collections.
The coin’s website credits CIC Digital, the same official licensee behind Trump’s NFT collections from 2022 and 2023. The infrastructure and deployment of the site also align with Trump’s earlier ventures, leading some to conclude it’s legitimate.
The memecoin immediately gained traction. As of now, $TRUMP is trading at $8.32 with a self-reported market cap of $6.7 billion. However, 80% of the tokens are locked and will gradually unlock over the next three years, making the circulating supply—and its true market cap—much smaller.
Blockchain tracking sites show that the coin has generated roughly $680 million in trading volume in its first hours of existence, placing it among the most actively traded new cryptocurrencies.
The Case for $TRUMP Being Legitimate
If this is a sanctioned Trump project, it would align with his recent pro-crypto stance. Trump has previously dipped his toes into Web3 with multiple NFT collections, and he’s publicly endorsed World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance platform.
Observers have pointed out that the $TRUMP website is remarkably similar to Trump’s NFT sites, down to the hosting provider, Heroku.
This consistency has led blockchain experts like the pseudonymous engineer cygaar to suggest that the same team likely deployed both projects.
Additionally, the posts on X and Truth Social have remained live for over 12 hours, with no follow-up indicating a hack or disavowal from Trump’s team.
Trump’s presidency has also leaned heavily into memes and online engagement, so launching an official memecoin as a cultural and financial rallying point wouldn’t be entirely out of character.
Further, he’s close with Elon Musk, who owns X. If it were a hack, he’s got direct access to the owner of the platform– which is more than the 99.99% of people who have had their X profile hacked.
The Case for Skepticism: Is Trump’s Memecoin a Scam?
Despite the evidence pointing to legitimacy, there are reasons to remain cautious.
First, the coin’s funding origins have raised eyebrows.
On-chain sleuths discovered that the project was seeded with millions of dollars from wallets linked to Binance and Gate.io, exchanges that do not cater to U.S. customers. For a project tied to a U.S. president, this is an unusual choice—and potentially problematic from a regulatory perspective.
Second, Trump’s high-profile status makes his accounts a prime target for hackers.
One red flag is that the top ten holders have 86% of the coin, and the contract ownership is not renounced.
The crypto industry has seen countless examples of high-profile figures’ accounts being compromised to promote pump-and-dump scams. In most cases, the hacked posts are quickly deleted, but the extended time these posts have remained live complicates the picture.
Lastly, while the coin is trading actively, many memecoins experience sharp rises followed by equally sharp declines as liquidity dries up or early adopters sell off their holdings. Whether $TRUMP holds its value or proves to be a speculative bubble remains to be seen.
So, What if $TRUMP is Real?
If $TRUMP is legitimate, it could signal a major shift in Trump’s approach to cryptocurrency, and a conversation would need to be had about the role of memecoins here on out.
As a sitting president, his endorsement of a memecoin would elevate the conversation around crypto to the highest levels of global politics– and likely not in a good way.
A Trump-backed memecoin would also present opportunities and risks for the U.S. crypto market.
On one hand, it could rally his supporters around blockchain technology, potentially boosting adoption.
On the other, it raises questions about the regulatory implications of a president directly promoting a cryptocurrency.
What It Means If $TRUMP is a Scam
If Trump’s accounts were hacked, this could go down as one of the most sophisticated scams in crypto history.
The resemblance to Trump’s past NFT projects, combined with the coin’s rapid adoption, suggests that the attackers put significant effort into making the project appear authentic.
A scam of this magnitude would likely lead to calls for stricter regulations around crypto and heightened scrutiny of high-profile accounts.
It would also serve as yet another cautionary tale for traders chasing the latest trend without proper due diligence.
How to Buy $TRUMP
Buyer beware– this is not financial advice.
One interested in purchasing $TRUMP would have to do so through a Solana-based exchange, such as the Jupiter exchange and by having a non-custodial wallet, such as Phantom wallet.
It’s not a verified coin, but the contract address is listed on sites like CoinMarketCap as 6p6xgHyF7AeE6TZkSmFsko444wqoP15icUSqi2jfGiPN
This is found on SolScan as well.
The next step would be to paste the address into the coin search bar, as there are already dozens of fake Trump memecoins (if this one is considered real) floating around. This will allow you to make your purchase in SOL or other SOL-compatible tokens.
Final Thoughts: Where Things Stand on $TRUMP
At this point, the jury is still out on whether $TRUMP is real or a scam. The evidence leans toward legitimacy, but in the world of crypto, appearances can be deceiving.
For now, the coin’s trading volume and market activity are impossible to ignore. Whether $TRUMP becomes a cultural phenomenon or a fleeting meme, it’s already a defining moment for crypto in 2025.
As always, if you’re considering getting involved, proceed with caution. The crypto market is as volatile as ever, and even legitimate projects can carry significant risks. Keep an eye on Trump’s official channels and the broader crypto community for updates—and, as always, don’t invest more than you’re willing to lose.
