Trump, Crypto, and the Art of Turning Speculation into State Treasure
When Donald Trump was sworn in for the second time on January 20, 2025, he didn’t just take control of the “nuclear football” — he also inherited a well-stocked “crypto briefcase.” In just five months, the former crypto-skeptic became the first U.S. president to directly hold over $20 billion in digital tokens, turn a meme coin into the engine of a family empire, and transform the White House into a permanent pump platform.
2019: “Scam” – 2025: “Business Model”
In July 2019, Trump tweeted that cryptocurrencies were “not money” and that their value was “based on thin air.” Five years later, he claims to have been “a big fan of crypto from the beginning.” The shift accelerated in spring 2024: at Mar-a-Lago, he hosted industry whales promising millions for his campaign; in Nashville, he pledged to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the world.”
The Trump Family’s Digital Arsenal
$TRUMP, the presidential meme coin. Launched on January 17, 2025, on the Solana blockchain, the token reached a market cap of $27 billion the very next day. Eighty percent of the 1 billion minted coins remain in companies controlled by Trump.
World Liberty Financial. This family-run DeFi project has already generated $500 million in profits via its stablecoin USD1 and a $2 billion investment fund backed by the UAE.
Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT). The parent company of Truth Social has pivoted to financial services and now holds $2 billion worth of Bitcoin in reserves.
The White House as a Trading Floor
Trump isn’t just a holder — he’s an influencer. When he announces a “private dinner” for the top 25 holders of $TRUMP, the coin’s value spikes instantly. His administration, led by former crypto investor David Sacks, is preparing light-touch regulations that would exempt meme coins from being classified as securities — exactly what the SEC still refuses to do.
Conflicts of Interest and Pump-and-Dump Suspicions
Critics and ethics experts are sounding the alarm:Trump’s holdings are officially placed in a revocable trust managed by his son, but he remains the ultimate beneficiary.A New York Times analysis estimates that 813,294 wallets lost $2 billion in twenty days, while Trump-owned companies collected $100 million in fees.Anti-corruption clauses in the Constitution may be violated if foreign governments purchase $TRUMP to influence U.S. policy.
The Marketer-in-Chief
Trump has realized that crypto isn’t just a technology; it’s a narrative that can be monetized. By merging the presidency with a marketplace, he turns every tweet, every executive order, every official dinner into a price catalyst. For his supporters, it’s “financial freedom”; for his critics, it’s a live demonstration of what is now being called the “liquidity trap presidency.”
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