Trump Calls Himself ‘President of Virtual Assets’… 700 Trillion Won Evaporates in 100 Days of Inauguration

For the 'Virtual Asset President' Donald Trump, the market capitalization has evaporated by over 700 trillion won within 100 days of his inauguration. Analysis suggests that high tariffs and ethical controversies shook the market, contrary to his pro-virtual asset stance during the election.

According to CoinMarketCap on the 30th, the virtual asset market capitalization was 29.7 billion dollars (about 4,227.2 trillion won) as of 2:30 PM. This is a decrease of about 52 billion dollars (about 739.8 trillion won) compared to the approximately 34.9 billion dollars (about 4,965.5 trillion won) recorded on January 20th when Trump took office. Bitcoin (BTC) price also retreated from 100,000 dollars to around 94,000 dollars during the same period.



The market contraction is attributed to the Trump administration's tariff policy. The high tariff policy announced on the 2nd stimulated global trade war concerns and increased risk asset avoidance sentiment. Particularly, the US mining industry in the global BTC mining market was directly impacted. The Trump government imposed high tariffs on major mining equipment manufacturing countries like Thailand (36%), Indonesia (32%), and Malaysia (24%), significantly increasing equipment import burdens.

Currently, the mutual tariffs on countries other than China have been suspended for 90 days and adjusted to a flat 10%, but the industry burden remains. Jaran Mellerud, CEO of BTC mining company HashLabs, said, "The 10% tariff is much lower than the initially planned high tariffs, but US mining companies are still disadvantaged in equipment purchases" and "Increased cost burden is affecting the long-term sustainability of new investments." This is contrary to Trump's promise to actively encourage BTC mining in the US.

The credibility of the virtual asset industry is also being shaken. Controversy has emerged that Trump himself issued a meme coin called OfficialTrump (TRUMP) and is profiting from it. The project recently announced inviting the top 25 TRUMP holders to a dinner with the president and a White House tour. Immediately after the announcement, TRUMP prices surged. According to blockchain analysis company Chainalysis, project insiders earned about 900,000 dollars (about 1.2 billion won) in transaction fees during two days of explosive trading volume. This profit occurs through a structure where a certain percentage is automatically transferred to the project's wallet with each transaction. The wallet is directly connected to TRUMP's founders.

Political circles are strongly criticizing this. John Ossoff, a US Democratic Senator, said, "Inviting TRUMP holders is grounds for impeachment" and "The president is essentially selling access for money." Currently, there are calls for a government-level ethical investigation of TRUMP.

The policy confusion and conflict of interest known as the 'Trump Risk' are also affecting institutional discussions in the US. Currently, the Genius (GENIUS) and Stable (STABLE) bills are being discussed in the Senate and House, respectively. These bills aim to establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins that was previously ambiguous and promote integration into the institutional system. Anthony Scaramucci, CEO of SkyBridge Capital, said, "Trump's politicization of every issue has made legislative discussions for the industry more difficult."

Reporter Kim Jung-woo

woo@sedaily.com