Trump Meme Coin marks one year since launch: The TRUMP token aftermath lingers, and U.S. crypto policy stalls

On January 19th, it was announced that it has been a year since former President Trump’s “Meme Coin” TRUMP officially launched. Named after the personal brand of U.S. President Donald Trump, this cryptocurrency continues to influence the direction of digital asset policies in the United States. In January last year, just three days before Trump’s second inauguration, the TRUMP token suddenly launched and quickly ignited market sentiment.

The token was issued on the Solana network. Within hours of going live, its market capitalization surged to approximately $10 billion, with the price reaching a high of $44. A large influx of speculative funds and a surge in access requests even put pressure on some wallet infrastructure. However, the hype quickly faded, and the price of TRUMP subsequently plummeted by about 93%. One year later, according to CoinGecko data, the TRUMP token’s price has fallen back below $5, with a market cap still close to $990 million.

As the one-year anniversary of Trump’s inauguration approaches, the political repercussions of this event are becoming more apparent. Several Democratic lawmakers believe that Trump’s and his family’s involvement in cryptocurrency activities during his term constitutes a potential conflict of interest and has become a significant obstacle to U.S. cryptocurrency legislation. Peter Chung, Head of Research at Presto Labs, pointed out that the launch of the TRUMP meme coin provided opposition forces with a pretext, causing delays in crypto regulatory reform.

Related controversies have also affected the legislative process for stablecoins. Discussions around the GENIUS Act have stalled, with some lawmakers calling for provisions to restrict the president and his family from profiting from digital assets. Democratic Representative Maxine Waters previously publicly accused Trump of “corrupt practices” in the crypto space and has pushed for restrictive legislation.

In addition to the TRUMP token, the Trump family is also associated with World Liberty Financial and its stablecoin project. Trump’s son, Eric Trump, revealed that the family-related crypto business has generated over $1 billion in profits. Several lawmakers have questioned this, suggesting it could impact policy neutrality.

Analysts believe that the TRUMP meme coin has evolved from a market frenzy into a long-term political variable. During a critical phase of advancing cryptocurrency regulation in the U.S., debates over the involvement of the president’s family in digital assets may continue to hinder policy progress.