Summary

  • Official meme coin $TRUMP tumbled 16% in 24 hours to a record low of $1.12 after Democrats took control of both the Senate and House.
  • $TRUMP once climbed to $73.43, but slid 98.5% as meme-coin hype and investor sentiment weakened and the midterm election result added pressure.
  • While Trump generated more than $1.4 billion in income and at least $2.3 billion in profit from crypto businesses including $TRUMP and WLFI, retail investors suffered heavy losses.

Forecast Trend Report by Period

Donald Trump’s official meme coin, $TRUMP, sank to a record low after Republicans were trounced in the U.S. midterm elections. The decline reflected concern that Democratic control of both chambers of Congress could stall the Trump administration’s pro-crypto agenda and intensify congressional scrutiny of the president’s family crypto businesses.

The token fell 16% in 24 hours to as low as $1.12 intraday on November 5, the Wall Street Journal reported. That left it down 98.5% from its all-time high of $73.43 in January last year. A simple calculation shows that a purchase worth 10 million won at the peak would now be worth about 153,000 won, or roughly $114.

$TRUMP was launched in January last year, three days before Trump’s second inauguration. Its political symbolism and buying by Trump supporters briefly pushed the price above $70, while its market capitalization swelled into the billions of dollars.

Meme coins tend to be driven more by buzz and investor sentiment than by a clear business model or practical use case. After the initial frenzy faded, the price fell quickly. The midterm election result triggered another leg lower.

Democrats took control of both the Senate and the House in the November 3 midterm elections. With the so-called blue tsunami becoming reality, the outlook for crypto deregulation and related legislation pushed by the Trump administration has grown more uncertain.

Democrats have long criticized the president’s family crypto ventures as a conflict-of-interest issue, raising the prospect that hearings and investigations could gather pace in the new Congress. WLFI, issued by World Liberty Financial, in which the Trump family participated, and a meme coin bearing first lady Melania Trump’s name also weakened after the election.

While the plunge in $TRUMP inflicted heavy losses on retail investors, Trump appears to have made substantial money from the coin business.

According to a 2025 annual financial disclosure filed with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, Trump reported $635 million in income related to sales of the $TRUMP meme coin. The filing refers to sales-related income, not gains on token holdings, and should be distinguished from net profit.

The Trump family reported more than $1.4 billion in income last year from crypto businesses including World Liberty Financial. Reuters estimated that the family earned at least $2.3 billion in profit from crypto ventures after returning to the White House in 2025.

Trump also drew criticism last year after personally attending a dinner for major $TRUMP holders, using coin ownership as a way to gain access to the president. The episode fueled conflict-of-interest concerns that the line between the president’s political influence and private business had become blurred.

Lee Song-ryeol, Hankyung.com reporter [email protected]

Korea Economic Daily