Meme Coins Mania Returns Following Foiled Trump Assassination
Meme coins spike leads other risky assets surge since the attempt to assassinate former president Donald Trump.
The shock shooting of Republican candidate Donald Trump, who is seeking victory in the November election, is reverberating around the crypto market. Meme coins emerge as the clear winner with a rebound after a spell of sustained hits. In particular, tokens such as Solana-based Dogwifhat and Ethereum’s Pepe are making huge gains.
Meme Coins Bullish Steam
Tuesday saw Pepe (PEPE) and Dogwifhat (WIF) pull the biggest winners in the meme coin segment, surging 21% and 18%, respectively, per CoinGecko data. Pepe rallied to exchange hands at $0.00001256, while Dogwifhat realized the $2.24. Also riding on the bullish steam is Solana’s Popcat, which shot up nearly 18% on Tuesday to break above $0.8995.
The widespread meme coin mania saw Dogecoin – the tenth largest crypto by market cap – rally nearly 5% on Tuesday. DOGE triumphed over Bitcoin, and Ethereum jumps to exchange hands at $0.1252.
Meme coins involve crypto, often derived from internet jokes, memes, and real-world events. While such virtual coins may run on their own blockchain or leverage networks like Ethereum and Solana, they are predominantly volatile.
The meme coins segment is riding on the bullish steam witnessed across the crypto space. Notably, the meme coins are up 1.5%, with the market cap rising to $54 billion. POPCAT leads the space with a 58.7% rally ahead of PEPE and dogwifhat (WIF) by 30% in the past week. Other notable gainers are Floki at 25.8%, trailed by DOGE at 15%, and SHIB at 16% in the past seven days, according to CoinGecko data.
Meme coins mirror the price movement of other risk-on assets – investments whose prices swing sideways – that have impressed off the back of the foiled assassination attempt on Trump.
The Republican nominee for the November 2024 election survived the attack while addressing a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The bullet skimmed the Grand Old Party (GOP) candidate’s right ear. Investors are placing crypto bets that the ex-U.S. president will return to the White House and become the most Wall Street-friendly candidate.
Following the unfortunate incident, meme stocks are up, with particular attention drawn by the Trump-themed meme coins skyrocketing in value. Trump positions his candidature as the crypto-friendly presidential hopeful vowing to defend the Bitcoin mining rights in the US. The GOP nominee is confirmed to address the 2024 Bitcoin Conference scheduled in Nashville, TN, later this month.
Trump Odds Peak on Vance VP Pick
The meme coins surge coincides with the peak in Trump’s odds of retaking the White House administration since picking Senator J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) as running mate. Traders on the crypto-based prediction platform Polymarket signal a 70% chance of Trump winning.
Notably, the Yes shares are trading at 70 cents early Wednesday at 07:37 am UTC to indicate a 70% prospect of victory. Each share on Polymarket pays out $1 for the accurate prediction. The bets are uniquely programmed into the smart contract using the Polygon blockchain and denominated in USDC stablecoin.
Trump unveiled Vance’s selection on Monday, two days after the harrowing incident over the weekend. The New York Times publication considers Vance as a millennial nominee first of a major-party ticket. The pick is poised to bring fresh energy to the GOP ticket, given Vance is a staunch crypto supporter.
The shooting incident turned Trump into a winning candidate, with a bloodied Trump image becoming an iconic viral presence. The Polymarket has seen $262 million staked on the presidential election contract. The platform was established four years ago and rides high on enthusiasm for election betting, similar to PredictIt.
PredictIt involves an older betting platform that settles bets in the customary greenbacks, indicating a similar trend. PredictIts saw the Yes shares surge from 60 cents to 69 cents after the Pennsylvania shooting.
