As President Donald Trump was sworn into office as the 47th president of the United States on Monday, scammers and opportunists were already looking to cash in on the new Trump era — including the president himself.
Just days before he took office, Trump launched a memecoin called $TRUMP to “celebrate our victory and have fun” and warned that it “wasn’t meant to be… an investment opportunity”. Trump announced the launch on X and Truth Social, with many wondering if the president’s accounts had been hacked.
However, within a few hours, thousands of people invested in the cryptocurrency. The sale was so successful that it accounted for nearly 90% of Trump’s total fortune worth trillions of dollars. However, like many memecoins, the price of $TRUMP has fluctuated wildly and dropped significantly on Sunday, with the price drop continuing on Monday.
By the time he was sworn in as president on Monday, the $TRUMP memecoin was worth just under $50 billion, with Trump retaining 80 percent of the coins. The coin, which is built on the Solana blockchain, allows anyone anywhere in the world to send 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 $MELANIA coin was worth nearly $8 billion on Monday.
The president and first lady were far from the only ones trying to capitalize on the buzz surrounding Trump’s second term, and especially the inauguration weekend. Since his first term, Trump has been a magnet for all kinds of complaints and fundraisers, many of which have been supported by the president himself, including everything from guitars and shoes to trading cards and coins.
Religion was also on the table. Lee Greenwood, a country singer, said Sunday that Trump could use a special edition of the “God Bless the USA” Bible for his swearing-in — the same Bible the singer has been selling with Trump since last March.
The “Inauguration Day Edition” Bible was on sale last week on Greenwood’s own website — along with pink and camo versions — for $70, but when Trump took office Monday, it appeared the Bible was already sold out.
There are a number of other commemorative items 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 his head, in what appears to be a marketing pitch.
And because Trump’s inauguration was moved indoors due to severe cold weather, tens of thousands of people who were sent tickets to the event were unable to use them. People tried to cash in on those tickets, with dozens of eBay listings offering unused tickets for up to $200 each. The tickets were distributed free of charge by members of the House of Representatives and bear a hologram and the signature of the representative whose office issued them. Many offers have already been sold, some sellers are offering multiple tickets.
A specific website offering commemorative inaugural tickets was also set up, with some tickets being offered for as much as US$900. It is not clear who is behind the site, but the site is ranked as the second result of a Google search for “inauguration commemorative tickets”.
Grifting and cash grabs are nothing new in Trumpworld. Since Trump took office in 2016, he and his nefarious supporters have adopted a wide variety of schemes. With Trump’s support, many personalities have addressed issues like the stolen election or the denial of COVID throughout their careers.
