Nation's Capital Prepares For President-Elect Trump's Second Inauguration

(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

New cryptocurrency $TRUMP surged, briefly hitting a $70 billion market cap

Trump’s new crypto project soared ahead of his inauguration, as reports emerge of a blizzard of executive orders planned for Day 1 of his presidency.

David Crowther

1/20/25 9:26AM

The keys to the White House have passed, once again, to Donald Trump.

Inaugurated as the United States of America’s 47th president, today’s swearing-in ceremony — moved indoors because of forecasts predicting it could be the coldest Inauguration Day since 1985 — gives the green light for the incoming administration to begin legislating its substantial agenda. Toward the top of that list of priorities is advocating for the cryptocurrency industry.

Trump 2.0

On Friday, reports emerged that making crypto a national priority could be among a flurry of executive orders that Trump issues on Day 1. But before any more details surfaced, the then president-elect sprang another surprise on the crypto universe: $TRUMP, a meme coin he launched while hosting a “Crypto Ball” for the industry on Friday night.

Two days later, $MELANIA was born, announced via a social-media post from the incoming first lady.

Initially, $MELANIA’s debut dragged $TRUMP down, but the pair of cryptocurrencies have since regained some footing. At this writing, the two tokens have a collective (fully diluted) market cap of nearly $60 billion.

The $TRUMP coin has an initial circulating supply of 200 million coins, with plans to release another 800 million over the coming three years. At current prices, that implies a market cap of either ~$47 billion or ~$9 billion, depending on which measure is used.

Per the asset’s official website:

“Trump Memes are intended to function as an expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol ‘$TRUMP’...”

Also:

“CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of The Trump Organization, and Fight Fight Fight LLC collectively own 80% of the Trump Cards, subject to a 3-year unlocking schedule.”

For years, the financial instrument to support Trump was the stock of DJT, the Trump Media & Technology Group. Now the “crypto president” has a new vehicle.

Zooming out: over the weekend, other digital assets also made gains, with bitcoin and Solana now up 18% and 46%, respectively, over the past seven days.

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Sage D. Young17h

GameStop transfers all but 1 bitcoin to Coinbase as collateral

It’s been one year since GameStop added bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, but the company has since halted its accumulation strategy, joining a fray of companies pivoting away from HODLing the cryptocurrency.

The gaming and collectibles retailer was at one point the 21st-largest bitcoin treasury company, but has since dropped to 190th after pledging all but one of its 4,710 bitcoin as collateral for its covered-call strategy with Coinbase Credit, data from Bitcoin Treasuries shows. Earlier this year, GameStop moved 51% of its bitcoin to Coinbase Prime, triggering speculation that it would offload the asset.

Coinbase Credit has the “right to rehypothecate, commingle, or unilaterally sell the Pledged Bitcoin,” per GameStop’s 10K filing with the SEC on Tuesday. “As a result of these rights, we concluded that control of the Pledged Bitcoin transferred to the counterparty. Accordingly, we derecognized the Pledged Bitcoin as an intangible asset.” That said, GameStop also “recognized digital assets receivable of $368.3 million... representing our contractual right to receive equivalent amount of Bitcoin in the future.”

GameStop sold covered‑call option contracts, which have strike prices ranging from $105,000 to $110,000 and maturities extending through March 2026, to mitigate its exposure to bitcoin’s price volatility and generate incremental yield.

The move comes as a number of other bitcoin firms have reached a tipping point and sold part of their stockpile.

Empery Digital, the 23rd-largest bitcoin treasury firm, announced in a March press release that it sold $4.2 million worth of BTC to fund share repurchases. DL News also reported that a shareholder who owns 9.8% of Empery Digital demanded the company sell its entire bitcoin stockpile and the immediate resignation of its CEO and entire board of directors.
GD Culture Group approved the sale of an unspecified amount of its 7,500-bitcoin reserve to fund its share repurchase program, according to a press release last month.
Elsewhere, Cango sold 4,451 BTC to reduce its overall finance leverage and strengthen its balance sheet, while Riot Platforms sold around $200 million worth of bitcoin in November and December.

Despite GameStop’s pledge to Coinbase Credit, the company has technically left the door open to resume its bitcoin strategy: the gaming firm said it intends to use net proceeds from its convertible 2030 notes for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition of bitcoin.

Shares of GameStop are up 2.7% today after posting lackluster Q4 results yesterday.

The move comes as a number of other bitcoin firms have reached a tipping point and sold part of their stockpile.

Empery Digital, the 23rd-largest bitcoin treasury firm, announced in a March press release that it sold $4.2 million worth of BTC to fund share repurchases. DL News also reported that a shareholder who owns 9.8% of Empery Digital demanded the company sell its entire bitcoin stockpile and the immediate resignation of its CEO and entire board of directors.
GD Culture Group approved the sale of an unspecified amount of its 7,500-bitcoin reserve to fund its share repurchase program, according to a press release last month.
Elsewhere, Cango sold 4,451 BTC to reduce its overall finance leverage and strengthen its balance sheet, while Riot Platforms sold around $200 million worth of bitcoin in November and December.

Shares of GameStop are up 2.7% today after posting lackluster Q4 results yesterday.

Yaël Bizouati-Kennedy

22h

Bernstein maintains bitcoin will hit $150,000 by year-end, but many experts think that’s “a stretch”

Bitcoin hasn’t crossed the $100,000 mark since November 2025.

Price Of Bitcoin Reaches New High, As Inflation Rises At Level Not Seen In 30 Years

Sage D. Young3/24/26

Circle plunges on report of proposal prohibiting platforms from offering yield payments

Circle, the firm behind the second-largest stablecoin, USDC, sank over 18.5% after journalist Eleanor Terrett posted on X that lawmakers are considering a proposal that would prohibit platforms such as exchanges and brokers from offering yield payments for holding stablecoins. Shares of US-based crypto exchange Coinbase, which has benefited from its ties to Circle and holds a minority interest in the stablecoin issuer, also fell on the report.

Stablecoin competitor Tether also announced signing a “Big Four” accounting firm to complete a full independent financial statement audit today, aimed at providing assurance that USDT is fully backed and highly liquid, the company’s press release said. The firm has never before allowed an independent audit, which has long plagued the company as investors questioned whether USDT is actually backed by its reserves.

The amount of Circle’s USDC in circulation sits at $81 billion, less than half the figure of the industry leader, Tether, whose USDT stablecoin sits at $184.2 billion, data from blockchain analytics firm Artemis shows.

Sage D. Young3/24/26

NYSE teams up with Securitize to create 24/7 tokenized securities market

Securitize, known for bringing real-world assets onto blockchain rails, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the New York Stock Exchange to develop 24/7 tokenized securities markets.

The tokenization company will become NYSE’s first digital transfer agent, enabling it to mint digital tokens native on a blockchain that represent shares for stocks and ETFs, The Wall Street Journal reports.

“This is about building tokenization in a way that works within real market structure, with the protections, controls, and operational integrity required for public securities,” Securitize cofounder and CEO Carlos Domingo said in a statement.

The news comes after Securitize, backed by BlackRock and Ark Invest, announced plans last year to go public through a SPAC deal with Cantor Equity Partners at a $1.25 billion valuation.

The partnership between Securitize and the NYSE makes the tokenization ecosystem increasingly crowded — crypto exchange Kraken is working with Nasdaq to offer tokenized stocks and other exchange-traded products, while S&P Dow Jones announced last week licensing the S&P 500 for a derivative contract on perpetual blockchain network Hyperliquid.

Tokenization refers to the process of representing financial assets, such as stocks and private credit, through digital tokens that live on blockchain networks. The global market for tokenization stands at $26.5 billion, multiples higher from one year ago, when the figure sat at $7.8 billion, per data from analytics platform rwa.xyz.

Exclusive | NYSE Partners With Securitize to Develop 24/7 Tokenized Securities Platform

The news comes after Securitize, backed by BlackRock and Ark Invest, announced plans last year to go public through a SPAC deal with Cantor Equity Partners at a $1.25 billion valuation.

Yaël Bizouati-Kennedy

3/24/26

Analyst: Traders are itching for a reason to start buying bitcoin again

Investors are clinging to any bit of good news amid the conflict in the Middle East.

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