Like President Donald Asset was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday, crooks and opportunists were already looking to take advantage of the new Trump era – including the president himself.
Just days before taking office, Trump launched a memecoin called $TRUMP to “celebrate our victory and have fun,” warning that it was “not intended to be…an investment opportunity.” Trump announced the launch of X and Truth Social, and many are wondering if the president’s accounts had been hacked.
However, within a few hours, thousands of people invested in cryptocurrency. The sale was so successful that, in billions of dollars, this represented almost 90% of Trump’s overall wealth. However, like many memecoins, the price of $TRUMP coin fluctuated wildly and dropped significantly on Sunday, with the price decline continuing through Monday.
As he was sworn in as president on Monday, the $TRUMP memecoin was worth just under $50 billion, with Trump keeping 80% of the coins. The coin, built on the Solana blockchain, allows anyone, anywhere in the world to funnel money directly to the US president.
First Lady Melania Trump also launched her own memecoin on Sunday, and while it didn’t reach the level of Trump’s memecoin, the Coin $MELANIA was worth nearly $8 billion on Monday.
The president and first lady were far from the only ones looking to capitalize on the buzz around Trump’s second term, and particularly inauguration weekend. Since his first term, Trump has been a magnet for all types of scams and embezzlements, many of which have been approved by the president himself, and which range from guitars to shoes to trading cards and coins.
Religion has also been on the table. Lee Greenwood, a country singer, said Sunday that Trump could use a special edition of the Bible “God bless the United States” for his swearing-in – the same bible the singer has been selling with Trump since last March.
The “Inauguration Day Edition Bible” went on sale on Greenwood’s website — alongside hot pink and camouflage versions of the Bible — for $70 last week, but when Trump took his functions on Monday, the Bible already seemed to be sold out.
A host of other commemorative items are on sale, from dozens of “Inauguration Day” t-shirts and hats sold on platforms like Amazon and Etsy to a special “Inauguration Edition” roast from Victory Coffee. A Texas-based jeweler is even offering to give the president an 8-carat diamond in the shape of a head in what appears to be a marketing offer.
And because Trump’s inauguration was held indoors due to the intense cold, tens of thousands of people who had received tickets to attend the event were unable to use them. People have been trying to cash in these tickets, with dozens of listings on eBay offering unused tickets for up to $200 each. The tickets were distributed free of charge by members of the House of Representatives and feature a hologram and the signature of the representative whose office issued them. Many listings have already sold, with some sellers offering multiple tickets.
A specific website offering commemorative tickets to the inauguration has also been created, with some tickets priced up to $900. It’s unclear who exactly is behind the page, but the site ranked second in a Google search for “commemorative inauguration tickets.”
Scam and cash grabs in Trumpworld are nothing new. Since Trump came to power in 2016, he and his sycophantic supporters have adopted a wide variety of projects. With Trump’s support, many figures have put entire careers in jeopardy. topics like stolen elections Or COVID denial.