Incoming First Lady Melania Trump introduced a cryptocurrency just before her husband’s inauguration as president of the United States.
The announcement comes after President-elect Donald Trump unveiled the $Trump cryptocurrency. Both digital currencies have experienced fluctuations in trading despite initial growth.
“The Official Melania Meme is now live! You can purchase $MELANIA today,” she shared on the social platform X on Sunday.
The “Official Melania Meme” webpage indicates that it is a crypto asset established and monitored on the Solana blockchain.
The $Trump and $Melania coin websites include disclaimers stating that they are “not meant to be, or the subject of” an investment opportunity or a security.
As per CoinMarketCap, the total market valuation of $Trump is approximately $12 billion, while $Melania’s valuation is around $1.7 billion. Trump had previously labelled cryptocurrencies a “scam,” but during the 2024 election campaign, he became the first presidential candidate to accept digital currencies for donations.
While campaigning, Trump also said he would develop a strategic bitcoin reserve and appoint financial regulators who would adopt a more favourable approach to digital assets.
These statements heightened expectations that he would loosen regulations governing the cryptocurrency sector.
Following Trump’s victory, bitcoin surged to an all-time high and is currently priced at about $107,000, according to the crypto trading platform Coinbase.
Other cryptocurrencies, such as dogecoin — endorsed by prominent Trump supporter Elon Musk — have also seen significant increases this year.
Under President Joe Biden’s administration, regulators have expressed concerns regarding fraud and money laundering, leading to a crackdown on crypto firms through lawsuits against exchanges.
