Launched a year ago, the $Trump meme coin has fallen more than 90%. During this period, the president's administration has failed to meet the expectations of the crypto community.
A few days before the inauguration of US President Donald Trump, the OFFICIAL TRUMP (TRUMP) memecoin was launched on the Solana blockchain. Trump officially supported the launch of the crypto asset, and the event became one of the most high-profile for the crypto market last year.
Exactly one year ago, on January 19, the price of TRUMP reached a historic peak above $75, since then falling by more than 90% to below $5. Experts believe that the project has done more harm than good to the crypto market, becoming a political tool and hindering key legislation.
“The launch of Trump's memecoin has done more harm than good to the industry. Political opponents cite his personal gain as a reason to block or slow down the legislative process in the cryptocurrency space,” Peter Chang, head of research at Presto Labs, told Decrypt.
The hype surrounding TRUMP in early 2025 coincided with the growth of the total market capitalization of meme coins, which rose to a record $150 billion. Also, after the launch of TRUMP, the main exchange regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), stated in February 2025 that their issuance and sale did not require registration, and buyers of such assets were not protected by US federal securities laws.
On this wave, dozens of memecoins were listed on major crypto exchanges, including the largest Binance and the American Coinbase, which did not want to risk adding memecoins until the change of administration in the US. By January 19, 2026, the market capitalization of the sector had fallen to $45 billion, according to Coingecko.
Although there have been periodic attempts to revive the TRUMP project community, the price has been on a downward trend for most of the year. For example, in May, Trump's team hosted a dinner at the Trump National Golf Club for the largest token holders. And in early December, it was announced that Trump's meme coin would be used as a reward in the mobile game “Trump Billionaires Club.”
However, none of these initiatives had a positive long-term impact. In April, there was an attempt to stabilize the price above $15 after it fell to $8. But since then, the price has fallen almost without rebound - on January 19, it dropped below $5.
A year under Trump
During Trump's presidency, only one law concerning the cryptocurrency market was passed - the GENIUS Act, which regulates the stablecoin market. However, the main document regulating the cryptocurrency market as a whole - the CLARITY Act - was never passed. Trump initially set a deadline for the adoption of CLARITY for last summer, then expectations shifted to September and then to the end of November.
Now, no exact dates have been given, although the introduction of transparent regulation was one of Trump's promises to the cryptocurrency market before the last election, which led to cryptocurrencies rising to new highs in 2025.
The same situation occurred with the national cryptocurrency reserve in the US. In one of his first executive orders in early 2025, Trump identified the development of the dollar stablecoin market as a priority and ordered the creation of a US government reserve consisting of confiscated cryptocurrencies. However, the audit of federal agencies' crypto assets, which are to form the basis of the reserve, scheduled for April 5, 2025, has not yet been carried out.
Some experts note that overly positive expectations were formed towards the Trump administration.
“Trump supports cryptocurrencies, and that's a positive thing. But we are not his top priority. I think our industry has always believed that Trump would be our savior, but in reality, that has never been the case,” Yat Siu, co-founder of investment company Animoca Brands, told Coindesk.
Others openly criticize the US president's policies. Charles Hoskinson, founder of the Cardano crypto project, said that Trump's policies have politicized cryptocurrency and turned half the country against the industry. He added that the Trump administration has put the American crypto industry in a worse position than it was under former President Joe Biden.
Siu noted the structural changes taking place in the market: institutional capital is becoming a permanent force. He believes that Bitcoin has taken on the role of a reserve asset, forcing altcoins to prove their real value.
The current situation, according to the expert, is the opposite of what it was at the beginning of 2025, when altcoins were valued based on political expectations. At that time, the industry was waiting for approval from regulators, which never came.
