Technology

Trump memecoin buyers lose billions

Nansen estimates $3.8bn losses across nearly one million accounts, SEC stance leaves memecoins outside securities rules

Images

Image Credits:Mandel NGAN/AFP / Getty Images Image Credits:Mandel NGAN/AFP / Getty Images techcrunch.com
techcrunch.com
US President Donald Trump speaks after signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 23, 2025. US President Donald Trump speaks after signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 23, 2025. techcrunch.com
The Venice AI team The Venice AI team techcrunch.com
techcrunch.com

Nearly one million accounts have lost money buying President Donald Trump’s $TRUMP memecoin, with total losses of $3.8 billion, according to an analysis by crypto data firm Nansen cited by TechCrunch. The firm said its estimate is based on transactions visible on the blockchain. By the end of June, Nansen counted 988,905 accounts in the red.

The numbers map a familiar retail-crypto pattern: a trade pitched as culture and belonging, priced like a lottery ticket, and settled with on-chain finality. TechCrunch reports that roughly two out of three $TRUMP buyers have lost money. The token was trading at $1.69 on July 5, down nearly 98% from a high of $75.35, after Trump announced the memecoin three days before his 2025 inauguration.

The losses sit alongside gains that are not evenly distributed. TechCrunch notes that in a financial disclosure Trump reported making $636 million from the $TRUMP memecoin, nearly half of the $1.4 billion he reported making from the crypto industry in 2025. Trump has also been tied to other crypto ventures: he previously co-founded a crypto startup, World Liberty Financial, with his sons, and TechCrunch reports that the associated $WLFI coin has also fallen sharply.

Regulatory posture matters because it shapes who bears the cleanup costs when hype collapses. Under the Trump administration, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has said it will not regulate memecoins as securities, according to TechCrunch, and it has dropped a number of lawsuits against crypto companies. A White House spokesperson told The New York Times that “President Trump proudly made the United States the crypto capital of the world.”

For buyers, the blockchain provides transparency about transactions but not protection against the basic math of late entry. Nansen’s count of losing accounts is a reminder that a public ledger can still record private regret at scale.

Nansen counted 988,905 losing accounts by the end of June. On July 5, $TRUMP was trading at $1.69.