Official Trump Solana Meme Coin Slumps as Melania Launches Her Own Token
Key Takeaways
- Donald Trump’s Solana-based meme coin, TRUMP, experienced a significant price drop following Melania Trump’s announcement of her own cryptocurrency.
- The Melania Meme token, also on the Solana blockchain, skyrocketed over 12,000% within 24 hours after its launch.
- The Melania token’s distribution model focuses heavily on collectibles and entertainment, without speculative or investment intentions.
- This token frenzy occurred amidst disruptions to Solana’s infrastructure, particularly affecting the Phantom Wallet, known as the “MetaMask of Solana.”
WEEX Crypto News, 2026-02-17 13:52:52
Introduction to the Meme Token Craze
In the ever-evolving landscape of cryptocurrencies, meme coins have captured the imagination of both investors and hobbyists. Recently, this patch of the virtual economy was electrified by the debut of the Melania Meme token, linked to Melania Trump. This entrance sparked a surreal sequence of events, including the sharp decline of the already established TRUMP meme coin. In this piece, we’ll delve deeper into what led to these drastic market movements and the nuanced specifics of each token’s framework that contributed to this striking episode.
TRUMP Coin’s Plunge
Donald Trump’s official meme coin, emblazoned with the former president’s name, saw a dramatic fall from its highs. The coin, TRUMP, was launched during a period when meme coins were reaching new found popularity, riding on the cultural weight of the Trump brand itself. At its height, TRUMP soared to $77 before it crashed down to $45, particularly rattling the crypto market during these turbulent hours.
Factors Behind the Decline
The plunge can be attributed to several factors—foremost among them being the publicized release of a competing token named Melania. Market watchers had predicted volatility, yet the extent to which TRUMP would declinate was unforeseen. The interconnectedness of their respective brands and the almost immediate speculative excitement around the Melania token catalyzed this crypto seesaw.
TRUMP, despite its initial allure, lacked a robust narrative that could have shielded it against quick market shifts. As the market tends to mirror the social dynamics surrounding meme tokens, the new narrative built around Melania’s token clearly siphoned off some of TRUMP’s allure.
The Meteoric Rise of Melania’s Token
In stark contrast to the TRUMP token’s decline, the newly minted Melania Meme token rode a wave of enthusiasm. The token, tied visually and narratively to the former First Lady, achieved an unheard-of increase—12,000% in just one day, ascending to a price of $6.70. Such exuberance can be attributed to a few strategic choices tied to its launch.
Tokenomics and Distribution Strategy
The Melania token’s distribution and purpose are key elements that fuelled its success. Distinct from high-investment financial instruments typical in the crypto field, it’s promoted primarily as a collectible entertainment asset. Its structure clearly distances itself from being labeled as an investment, supporting individuals interested more in digital memorabilia than traditional assets.
The token’s framework includes a vesting schedule, with a lock period of 30 days followed by methodical monthly releases. This approach encourages a steady release and distributes the collective 35% of the tokens designated for team vesting over 13 months. Simultaneously, it sets aside equal 20% allocations to facilitate treasury expansion and community initiatives. Uniquely, the liquidity pool exercises a conservative 10% allocation, while public distribution stands at 15%.
Market Position and Intentions
From the beginning, this token was not couched as a speculative asset. Instead, it relies on its position as a work of entertainment and collection. Such a model differentiates the Melania Meme token, offering it a defensive posture against typical market pressures.
The clarification that the token is “intended for collecting and entertainment purposes only,” as stated on the project’s website, sets firm boundaries that prevent investor misinterpretation. While other tokens tussle with investor expectations, the Melania token shapes itself as joyful engagement—a new kind of digital interaction rather than fiscal commitment.
The Crypto Community’s Reaction
The crypto world took notice of Mrs. Trump’s new project through its various channels, with both social media commentaries and technical insights teasing out its implications. Forums, tweets, and postings particularly highlighted the heart of this phenomenon: the surprise among enthusiasts given the token’s affiliation to figures generally detached from blockchain utility.
Social Media and the Kobeissi Letter
On social media networks, including X (a platform previously known as Twitter), responses ranged from confused amusement to outright disbelief. A noteworthy comment from members of the Kobeissi Letter: “Donald Trump’s memecoin, $TRUMP, crashes … as Melania Trump launches her own memecoin. This is beyond insane.”
Such poignant reflections underline a fair sense of surprise—and perhaps humor—that distinguishes the crypto space’s engagement with meme tokens.
Technical Impediments during the Token Launch
While the market raved at Melania’s spectacular token ascent, technical hurdles did persist, affecting broader Solana network functions. As transaction volumes spiked, this surge generated unintended stress, especially on platforms like the Phantom Wallet—analogous to the Ethereum community’s Metamask.
Phantom Wallet Congestion
Phantom Wallet, recognized for facilitating cross-network transactions, has an established user base exceeding 15 million monthly participants. This popularity underpins why the platform momentarily struggled to process the tidal volume of over 8 million requests per minute. Compounding factors such as over-demand made transactions erratic, compounding user frustration.
Reports indicated that users sometimes required multiple efforts to successfully complete a transaction. With inflated demand, processing inefficiencies surfaced, inconveniencing many.
Moonshot Platform Impacts
Moonshot, a Solana-exclusive meme coin launchpad, was another service facing substantial traffic increases. Swaps and attempts at transactions eventually failed, albeit sporadically, as users tried again unsuccessfully. Through public notifications, developers urged patience and reattempts, emphasizing an ongoing effort to lift system reliability.
Analysis: Brand Alignment in the Crypto Space
The simultaneous movements of Trump and Melania in capitalizing on their brand through meme coins present a unique study into brand alignment within the cryptocurrency space. The two coins show stark contrasts in how they leverage brand narratives to secure value—a tactic that may intrigue those following crypto-market intersections with high-profile individuals.
Presidential Promises on Cryptocurrency
In addition to personal sideshows like that of the memecoins, Donald Trump has made clear promises to nurture favorable crypto environments. His administration’s plans, as mentioned during his campaign, to establish a Bitcoin reserve align short-term market sentiments with long-term symbolic advancements.
Through anticipated regulatory encouragement, such aspirations present a sentimental boost to ecosystems like Bitcoin. Furthermore, it stipulates a national narrative that might redefine government-crypto relations—a lasting ambition despite the whimsical allure of meme tokens.
Conclusion
This ongoing narrative encompassing the Trump and Melania meme tokens elucidates the blend of market perception and digital phenomena. The market’s receptiveness to such tokens is a fascinating reflection of the cultural intersection between politics, branding, and finance within cryptocurrency. Despite their frivolous origins, these meme tokens underscore significant trends and attitudes about digital assets.
As the market continues to evolve, these tokens may perhaps fade, but the implication they had on meme tokenization could linger. Engaging yet mercurial, these instances starkly embody the evolving dynamics and potential volatility within the cryptosphere.
Frequently Asked Questions
What caused the drop in TRUMP token’s price?
The TRUMP token fell sharply due to the launch of Melania Trump’s competing meme coin, which overshadowed TRUMP with a surge in interest and value.
How did the Melania token increase in price?
The Melania token recorded a price increase due to its compelling distribution model and strategic alignment as a collectible and entertainment-focused digital asset.
Were there technical challenges during the token launches?
Yes, platforms like Phantom Wallet and Moonshot encountered technical issues due to high transaction volumes, causing delays and difficulties in processing trades.
Are meme tokens considered good investments?
Meme tokens like Melania are generally positioned as entertainment and collectibles, not financial investments, highlighting their speculative nature in the crypto space.
What regulatory measures support these tokens?
Donald Trump’s administration plans to foster a favorable crypto environment, which includes establishing a Bitcoin reserve and easing regulatory paths for the industry.
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Debunking the AI Doomsday Myth: Why Establishment Inertia and the Software Wasteland Will Save Us
Editor's Note: Citrini7's cyberpunk-themed AI doomsday prophecy has sparked widespread discussion across the internet. However, this article presents a more pragmatic counter perspective. If Citrini envisions a digital tsunami instantly engulfing civilization, this author sees the resilient resistance of the human bureaucratic system, the profoundly flawed existing software ecosystem, and the long-overlooked cornerstone of heavy industry. This is a frontal clash between Silicon Valley fantasy and the iron law of reality, reminding us that the singularity may come, but it will never happen overnight.
The following is the original content:
Renowned market commentator Citrini7 recently published a captivating and widely circulated AI doomsday novel. While he acknowledges that the probability of some scenes occurring is extremely low, as someone who has witnessed multiple economic collapse prophecies, I want to challenge his views and present a more deterministic and optimistic future.
In 2007, people thought that against the backdrop of "peak oil," the United States' geopolitical status had come to an end; in 2008, they believed the dollar system was on the brink of collapse; in 2014, everyone thought AMD and NVIDIA were done for. Then ChatGPT emerged, and people thought Google was toast... Yet every time, existing institutions with deep-rooted inertia have proven to be far more resilient than onlookers imagined.
When Citrini talks about the fear of institutional turnover and rapid workforce displacement, he writes, "Even in fields we think rely on interpersonal relationships, cracks are showing. Take the real estate industry, where buyers have tolerated 5%-6% commissions for decades due to the information asymmetry between brokers and consumers..."
Seeing this, I couldn't help but chuckle. People have been proclaiming the "death of real estate agents" for 20 years now! This hardly requires any superintelligence; with Zillow, Redfin, or Opendoor, it's enough. But this example precisely proves the opposite of Citrini's view: although this workforce has long been deemed obsolete in the eyes of most, due to market inertia and regulatory capture, real estate agents' vitality is more tenacious than anyone's expectations a decade ago.
A few months ago, I just bought a house. The transaction process mandated that we hire a real estate agent, with lofty justifications. My buyer's agent made about $50,000 in this transaction, while his actual work — filling out forms and coordinating between multiple parties — amounted to no more than 10 hours, something I could have easily handled myself. The market will eventually move towards efficiency, providing fair pricing for labor, but this will be a long process.
I deeply understand the ways of inertia and change management: I once founded and sold a company whose core business was driving insurance brokerages from "manual service" to "software-driven." The iron rule I learned is: human societies in the real world are extremely complex, and things always take longer than you imagine — even when you account for this rule. This doesn't mean that the world won't undergo drastic changes, but rather that change will be more gradual, allowing us time to respond and adapt.
Recently, the software sector has seen a downturn as investors worry about the lack of moats in the backend systems of companies like Monday, Salesforce, Asana, making them easily replicable. Citrini and others believe that AI programming heralds the end of SaaS companies: one, products become homogenized, with zero profits, and two, jobs disappear.
But everyone overlooks one thing: the current state of these software products is simply terrible.
I'm qualified to say this because I've spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Salesforce and Monday. Indeed, AI can enable competitors to replicate these products, but more importantly, AI can enable competitors to build better products. Stock price declines are not surprising: an industry relying on long-term lock-ins, lacking competitiveness, and filled with low-quality legacy incumbents is finally facing competition again.
From a broader perspective, almost all existing software is garbage, which is an undeniable fact. Every tool I've paid for is riddled with bugs; some software is so bad that I can't even pay for it (I've been unable to use Citibank's online transfer for the past three years); most web apps can't even get mobile and desktop responsiveness right; not a single product can fully deliver what you want. Silicon Valley darlings like Stripe and Linear only garner massive followings because they are not as disgustingly unusable as their competitors. If you ask a seasoned engineer, "Show me a truly perfect piece of software," all you'll get is prolonged silence and blank stares.
Here lies a profound truth: even as we approach a "software singularity," the human demand for software labor is nearly infinite. It's well known that the final few percentage points of perfection often require the most work. By this standard, almost every software product has at least a 100x improvement in complexity and features before reaching demand saturation.
I believe that most commentators who claim that the software industry is on the brink of extinction lack an intuitive understanding of software development. The software industry has been around for 50 years, and despite tremendous progress, it is always in a state of "not enough." As a programmer in 2020, my productivity matches that of hundreds of people in 1970, which is incredibly impressive leverage. However, there is still significant room for improvement. People underestimate the "Jevons Paradox": Efficiency improvements often lead to explosive growth in overall demand.
This does not mean that software engineering is an invincible job, but the industry's ability to absorb labor and its inertia far exceed imagination. The saturation process will be very slow, giving us enough time to adapt.
Of course, labor reallocation is inevitable, such as in the driving sector. As Citrini pointed out, many white-collar jobs will experience disruptions. For positions like real estate brokers that have long lost tangible value and rely solely on momentum for income, AI may be the final straw.
But our lifesaver lies in the fact that the United States has almost infinite potential and demand for reindustrialization. You may have heard of "reshoring," but it goes far beyond that. We have essentially lost the ability to manufacture the core building blocks of modern life: batteries, motors, small-scale semiconductors—the entire electricity supply chain is almost entirely dependent on overseas sources. What if there is a military conflict? What's even worse, did you know that China produces 90% of the world's synthetic ammonia? Once the supply is cut off, we can't even produce fertilizer and will face famine.
As long as you look to the physical world, you will find endless job opportunities that will benefit the country, create employment, and build essential infrastructure, all of which can receive bipartisan political support.
We have seen the economic and political winds shifting in this direction—discussions on reshoring, deep tech, and "American vitality." My prediction is that when AI impacts the white-collar sector, the path of least political resistance will be to fund large-scale reindustrialization, absorbing labor through a "giant employment project." Fortunately, the physical world does not have a "singularity"; it is constrained by friction.
We will rebuild bridges and roads. People will find that seeing tangible labor results is more fulfilling than spinning in the digital abstract world. The Salesforce senior product manager who lost a $180,000 salary may find a new job at the "California Seawater Desalination Plant" to end the 25-year drought. These facilities not only need to be built but also pursued with excellence and require long-term maintenance. As long as we are willing, the "Jevons Paradox" also applies to the physical world.
The goal of large-scale industrial engineering is abundance. The United States will once again achieve self-sufficiency, enabling large-scale, low-cost production. Moving beyond material scarcity is crucial: in the long run, if we do indeed lose a significant portion of white-collar jobs to AI, we must be able to maintain a high quality of life for the public. And as AI drives profit margins to zero, consumer goods will become extremely affordable, automatically fulfilling this objective.
My view is that different sectors of the economy will "take off" at different speeds, and the transformation in almost all areas will be slower than Citrini anticipates. To be clear, I am extremely bullish on AI and foresee a day when my own labor will be obsolete. But this will take time, and time gives us the opportunity to devise sound strategies.
At this point, preventing the kind of market collapse Citrini imagines is actually not difficult. The U.S. government's performance during the pandemic has demonstrated its proactive and decisive crisis response. If necessary, massive stimulus policies will quickly intervene. Although I am somewhat displeased by its inefficiency, that is not the focus. The focus is on safeguarding material prosperity in people's lives—a universal well-being that gives legitimacy to a nation and upholds the social contract, rather than stubbornly adhering to past accounting metrics or economic dogma.
If we can maintain sharpness and responsiveness in this slow but sure technological transformation, we will eventually emerge unscathed.
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