President Donald Trump’s cryptocurrency, referred to as $TRUMP, has ignited significant controversy and backlash, with critics labeling it a “conflict of interest,” a “constitutional crisis,” and blatant “corruption.”
In spite of the criticism, the memecoin has shown to be exceptionally lucrative for a limited group of investors. As reported by CNBC, information from blockchain analytics company Chainalysis indicates that 58 cryptocurrency wallets have earned over $10 million each from $TRUMP, amounting to around $1.1 billion in total profits. Nonetheless, it is crucial to emphasize that these wallets may not correspond to 58 distinct individuals, as a single person can manage multiple wallets. The identities tied to these wallets remain a mystery.
A Bloomberg investigation uncovered that 19 of the top 25 $TRUMP holders listed on the coin’s official leaderboard are utilizing foreign cryptocurrency exchanges that prohibit U.S. customers. In fact, 76% of the top 220 holders are engaged in trading through similar offshore platforms.
Earlier this year, Reuters revealed that Trump and his associated companies had already accrued nearly $100 million in trading fees from the $TRUMP coin. Axios now projects that this figure has escalated to $320 million.
However, the financial prosperity of $TRUMP has not been universally experienced. Chainalysis states that out of roughly 2 million wallets that have held the coin, 764,000 have incurred losses. A February report from The New York Times estimated that total losses among $TRUMP holders had amounted to around $2 billion at that point.
The $TRUMP coin was introduced the Friday prior to Trump’s January presidential inauguration. It skyrocketed to over $70 within a day but has since experienced a significant decline in value, currently trading at approximately $10.
In what seems to be an attempt to rekindle interest and enhance the coin’s value, Trump recently declared that the top 200 $TRUMP holders would receive invitations to a dinner with him. Following this announcement, roughly $100 million worth of $TRUMP tokens were acquired on cryptocurrency exchanges, according to The Washington Post. This increase in trading resulted in additional profits for Trump’s crypto initiatives through heightened transaction fees.
Mashable has contacted Chainalysis for validation of the data and will provide updates to the story if further information is received.