Trump gives conflicting answers over profiteering from TRUMP coin

In an interview aired May 4 on NBC News’ Meet the Press, President Donald Trump offered contradictory statements regarding the profits he made from his self-branded cryptocurrency, TRUMP coin. The US president said “I’m not profiting from anything,” then later claimed his earnings “started long before the election.”

Host Kristen Welker asked what Trump thinks about those claiming he is “profiting from the presidency, to which he responded, “Look, if I own stock in something and I do a good job, and the stock market goes up, I guess I’m profiting.”

The Official Trump (TRUMP) token debuted on January 17, just three days before Trump was sworn into office for a second term on January 20. According to data from CoinGecko, the coin surged to a peak value of $73.43 on January 19, its highest recorded price, before nosediving to values below $20.

The coin’s value has plummeted nearly 85% from its all-time high price, now trading around $11.35. Still, it experienced a short-lived surge in late April after a promotional update from the coin’s official website offered top holders a dinner with Trump scheduled for May 22.

Throughout the NBC interview, Trump appeared unaware of the coin’s value fluctuations. “What’s it worth?” he asked Welker. “You might as well tell me because I have no idea. Well, it, it surged. It surged.”

Welker informed the president that the token had peaked between $75 and $35 in January. Trump did not directly respond to the figures but insisted that any personal benefit was incidental to America’s “economic success.”

Token ownership linked to Trump’s companies

Ownership records point to significant ties between Trump-affiliated entities and the TRUMP coin. Two companies, CIC Digital LLC, a branch of the Trump Organization, and Fight Fight Fight LLC, a joint venture involving CIC, collectively control 80% of the coin’s total one billion token supply.

The majority of those holdings are under lock and key, set to be gradually unlocked over the next three years. The first such unlock occurred on April 18, with 40 million tokens, valued at $454 million at the time, transferred to CIC Digital.

Asked whether he planned to donate any of his potential crypto profits to the government, as he has pledged to do with his presidential salary, Trump demurred. 

“I never thought of that. I mean, should I contribute all of my real estate that I’ve owned for many years if it goes up a little bit because I’m president and doing a good job? I don’t think so,” he propounded.

In the interview, the POTUS used a familiar line of attack that liberal leaders like Senator Elizabeth Warren have lambasted him with. He singled out California Rep Nancy Pelosi, accusing her of benefiting financially through political connections.

“But who really profits is somebody like Nancy Pelosi who uses inside information,” Trump said. “She worked for $175,000 a year, and that’s at the high end, and she’s worth $150 to $200 million. OK? You ought to look at Nancy Pelosi and you ought to look at some of these politicians that are stonecold crooks. I was very wealthy when I came in.”

Trump: Crypto is important and popular

Aside from addressing TRUMP coin’s performance, Trump doubled down on his support for crypto, tying their adoption to the nature of America as a competitive nation. “I want crypto,” he stated. “I think crypto’s important because if we don’t do it, China’s going to. And it’s new, it’s very popular, it’s very hot.”

He bashed his predecessor, Joe Biden, claiming the former president initially opposed digital currencies before changing his position in an attempt to appeal to digital asset supporters ahead of the 2024 election. 

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