First Lady's Digital Currency Creators Hit with Pump-and-Dump Fraud Legal Action

The architects responsible for a virtual coin introduced by First Lady of the United States Melania Trump are now accused in federal papers of executing a market manipulation plot.

Coin Release and Value Spike

The $MELANIA cryptocurrency were made available for under a dollar each on the 19th of January, just prior to Donald Trump assumed the presidency.

Alongside the First Lady's token, the former president introduced his own digital currency shortly prior to the inauguration ceremony.

Shortly after launch, the market value of the $MELANIA token skyrocketed to $13.73 per token.

Rapid Decline in Value

Nevertheless, the price plummeted with similar speed, and currently stands at approximately a dime – below one percent of its peak price.

In parallel, the $TRUMP token hit a high of $45.47 and currently exchanges for under six dollars.

Court Claims and Plaintiffs' Position

The investors claim that the token's architects planned the maneuver aware that the digital currency's value would plummet.

Melania Trump personally is not mentioned in the lawsuit. Investors stated they do not consider she was at fault, but alleged the crypto companies of leveraging her and other familiar faces as window dressing for their illegal activities.

Trading Venue Involvement

As per fresh legal documents, investors allege executives of the Meteora trading platform, where the First Lady's token was initially traded, of setting up a operation that allowed them to discreetly acquire significant amounts of the virtual coin.

Their partners then quickly resold these virtual tokens, earning significant gains while triggering the value to crash, according to documents filed in federal court in Manhattan.

Broader Context

The claims regarding the Melania token have been included in court cases concerning multiple additional digital currencies, which began in spring.

The Trump organization has according to reports earned in excess of one billion dollars in pre-tax profits from various blockchain-associated ventures and firms over the previous twelve months.