$TRUMP holds firm, $MELANIA in spotlight as bitcoin soars to all-time high

Cryptocurrency market burst ahead of the U.S. presidential inauguration ceremony on Monday, as recently launched meme coins of new President Donald Trump and new first lady Melanie Trump reached billions of dollars in market cap.

According to CoinMarketCap data, the $TRUMP coin, which was launched by Donald Trump on Jan. 18 reached its peak on Sunday, reaching $74.59. Despite the decline caused by profit sales on Monday morning, the $TRUMP coin still constitutes a 720% yield since its launch, 225.22% in the last 24 hours.

With those, $TRUMP becomes the 15th largest cryptocurrency in the world, in under 48 hours. By 9:30 a.m. GMT, the coin was being exchanged at $51, with a $10.22 billion market cap for 200 million of supply.

$TRUMP held on, $MELANIA came out

On the other hand, following high interest in $TRUMP, Melania Trump also launched her own meme coin, $MELANIA on Monday.

The Official Melania Meme is live!

You can buy $MELANIA now. https://t.co/8FXvlMBhVf

FUAfBo2jgks6gB4Z4LfZkqSZgzNucisEHqnNebaRxM1P pic.twitter.com/t2vYiahRn6

— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) January 19, 2025

Making an impressive start, $MELANIA soared nearly 50% to over $10 by 9:30 a.m. GMT, reaching a $2.1 billion market cap.

While the current circulating supply of $MELANIA stands at 192.21 million, 96% of investors on CoinMarketCap voted that it is likely to surge even further.

Bitcoin at all-time high

Reaching over $109,000 on Monday, bitcoin achieved its new all-time high level as Trump, who has indicated intentions to ease regulations on the cryptocurrency industry, prepares to assume office for his second term.

Bitcoin surged to $109,241 before falling back to $107,765 at around 7:40 a.m. GMT. The most valued cryptocurrency gained momentum, rebounding over to 108,000 by 9:30 a.m. GMT.

The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has soared since Trump won the presidential election in November, with bitcoin surpassing $100,000 for the first time in early December. It came after he nominated cryptocurrency backer Paul Atkins to head the U.S. securities regulator, reinforcing optimism the new president will deregulate the sector.

First congratulations to bitcoin investors came from Trump

When bitcoin reached the landmark $100,000 level, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: “CONGRATULATIONS BITCOINERS!!! $100,000!!! YOU’RE WELCOME!!! Together, we will Make America Great Again!”

Despite having once branded cryptocurrencies a “scam”, Trump changed his stance and was a major advocate of them during his election campaign.

Cryptocurrencies have made headlines since their creation, from their extreme volatility to the collapse of several industry giants, foremost among them the FTX exchange platform.

Bitcoin was conceived in 2008 by an unknown person or group under the name Satoshi Nakamoto. It was pitched as a way to break free of mainstream financial institutions by establishing a decentralized platform for transactions.

The digital currency is created ─or “mined”─ as a reward when powerful computers solve complex problems to validate transactions made on a meddle-proof register known as the blockchain.

Bitcoin has long been criticized for being the currency of choice for making untraceable payments on the so-called dark web, a hidden part of the internet used for criminal activities.

The asset has often come under attack for facilitating money laundering and allowing extortion through ransomware attacks.

Its carbon footprint has also come under scrutiny because mining cryptocurrencies requires huge amounts of energy.