TrumpMarketsAltcoins
|5 min ReadTrump and Melania Memecoins Ignite Profit and Ethics Scandal
Maya Chen
Senior Analyst
Published
Jan 16, 2026
The prices did what memecoins always do when celebrity gravity meets thin liquidity. They ripped, they trapped, and they bled. What makes TRUMP and MELANIA different is not the drawdown. It is the allegation that the drawdown was the product.
The trade was simple, the extraction was not
TRUMP launched in the run up to inauguration weekend and immediately turned into a frenzy. MELANIA followed within days. Both tokens then collapsed, leaving hundreds of thousands of holders underwater while a small set of addresses appeared to move with unnatural speed.
Blockchain analysis firms Chainalysis and Bubblemaps estimated the team behind the launch may have cashed out more than \$350 million. That number matters less than the mechanism. Memecoins do not need cash flows, products, or narratives that survive contact with reality. They need timing, distribution, and a venue where early buyers can dump into fresh demand.
The story is not just about celebrity branding. It is about the plumbing that makes “near zero to tens of billions in implied value” possible in hours. When the market is wired for instant listings, influencer amplification, and perpetual attention, “fair launch” becomes a marketing phrase, not a market structure.
Inside timing, shadow wallets, and the Solana launch machine
On chain patterns were the accelerant. Bubblemaps’ Nicolas Vaiman described wallets that bought TRUMP within seconds, flipped within days, and booked massive gains, behavior that looks like foreknowledge in any traditional market. The same analysis linked a pre launch MELANIA buyer to the wallet that created the token, implying a tight operational cluster rather than organic discovery.
The narrative widened after Argentina’s Libra token imploded following a brief endorsement from President Javier Milei, then a rapid crash and deletion. Hayden Davis, tied to Kelsier Ventures, later surfaced as a self described adviser in that episode and acknowledged involvement in MELANIA’s rollout, while insisting he did not profit. Separately, he described “sniping” as part of the memecoin meta, a tactic where insiders or fast operators buy the first blocks and sell into the stampede.
That is the uncomfortable truth in this market. The profit edge is not research. It is proximity. If you are early enough to own the first supply, you are not predicting a pump. You are manufacturing the exit liquidity.
The alleged pipeline runs through platforms, promoters, and access
Multiple threads in the source reporting point toward a recurring cast: organizers, connectors, and venue operators. Bill Zanker, a long time Trump business partner, appeared in sparse corporate filings tied to Fight Fight Fight LLC, the name on the TRUMP website. The reporting also connects the memecoin launch wave to Solana venues that specialize in fast creation and immediate trading.
Pump.fun’s cofounder Alon Cohen described a market that turns any viral moment into a token in minutes, and estimated the platform has pulled in around \$1 billion in fees since January 2024. That revenue profile tells you what the real business is. The house wins on throughput, not on outcomes.
For the Trump tokens, the early trading reportedly centered on Meteora, a venue tied to the Jupiter ecosystem. The reporting cites Moty Povolotski, a DefiTuna cofounder, who alleged Davis ran repeated “pump and dump” style playbooks and pointed to relationships with Meteora leadership. Under pressure after the Milei related fallout, Ben Chow resigned. “Meow”, identified in the reporting as Ming Yeow Ng, emphasized his team provided technical support rather than trading or coordination, and rejected claims of backroom dealing.
This is where the scandal risk concentrates. You do not need a written conspiracy to produce a predictable retail wipeout. You only need a system where token creation, influencer distribution, liquidity bootstrapping, and exchange access are controlled by a small circle that can move faster than the crowd.
Why the blowback matters for crypto’s next regime
The political optics are radioactive, but the market impact is broader. When a token can be framed as a pay to play instrument, the regulatory risk premium bleeds into everything around it, from Solana memecoin venues to centralized exchanges that list the next hot celebrity coin.
The reporting notes TRUMP fell about 92 percent from its peak, trading around \$5.9 on Dec. 10, while MELANIA dropped roughly 99 percent to about \$0.11. Meanwhile, Blockworks data cited in the piece said overall memecoin volume was down 92 percent from the January peak by November. That looks less like a pause and more like saturation. Retail does not get infinite lives.
The lawsuits are the second fuse. New York lawyer Max Burwick is pursuing cases that argue memecoin venues operated like insider casinos. Defendants deny wrongdoing. Even if the courts move slowly, the market reads the direction. Platforms will tighten, listings will get pickier, and the next cycle will price “headline risk” into meme liquidity faster than traders expect.
The clean scenario is not that memecoins disappear. It is that the edge gets more expensive. The ugly scenario is a regulatory shock that hits the venues, not the tokens, and forces liquidity to vanish overnight. In a market built on speed, that is where the real crash lives.
Disclaimer: This document is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views expressed in this document are not, and should not be taken as, investment advice or recommendations. Recipients should do their own due diligence, taking into account their specific financial circumstances, investment objectives and risk tolerance, which are not considered here, before investing. This document is not an offer, or the solicitation of an offer, to buy or sell any of the assets mentioned.