A sharp downturn in cryptocurrency markets is testing the faith of supporters of Donald Trump who once believed his return to the White House would ignite an unprecedented digital-asset boom, according to reporting by The Times.
During the 2024 campaign, Trump branded himself the “crypto president,” drawing strong backing from a coalition of political loyalists and speculative investors who were frustrated by regulation and inflation in the previous administration. Many expected friendlier policies to drive cryptocurrencies to new heights, with some enthusiasts predicting that Bitcoin could eventually reach $300,000. Instead, the market has erased trillions of dollars in value since late 2025, leaving retail investors nursing losses even as crypto-related ventures reportedly boosted the Trump family’s wealth.
Bitcoin, which hit a record high of $126,000 in October, has since fallen sharply and is trading well below that peak, declining roughly 24 percent this year. Other major tokens have fared worse, with Ethereum down by about a third and Solana losing more than a third of its value. The turbulence has also hit industry infrastructure, as Coinbase posted an unexpected quarterly loss amid weaker trading volumes.
Some within Trump-aligned crypto circles acknowledge growing disappointment. Promoters of politically themed “memecoins” say liquidity drained from the broader market after Trump and First Lady Melania Trump launched their own branded tokens shortly before the inauguration, drawing speculative money into a narrow set of projects whose valuations later slumped. Retail investors who bought near the peak have yet to recover their losses.
Policy moves from Washington have delivered mixed results for the industry. The administration appointed a crypto-friendly regulator to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission and approved legislation governing dollar-pegged digital tokens. Trump also signed an executive order establishing a national bitcoin reserve using assets already seized by the government. However, the long-anticipated large-scale federal purchase of bitcoin has not materialized, tempering expectations of sustained price support.
Market analysts say political leadership alone cannot explain the downturn. The rapid expansion of sports betting and prediction-market platforms has drawn younger traders away from crypto speculation, while institutional investors have introduced faster, more tactical trading patterns that amplify volatility. These dynamics have made digital assets behave less like ideological investments and more like high-risk financial instruments.
Forecasts from Standard Chartered now suggest bitcoin could fall further before stabilizing, with analysts warning of continued price pressure tied to outflows from exchange-traded funds and a weaker macroeconomic environment. The bank expects the cryptocurrency to end 2026 near $100,000, a significant downgrade from earlier projections.
Despite criticism from some online influencers who once championed Trump as a catalyst for explosive growth, long-time participants argue that the sector’s trajectory extends beyond any single political figure. Veteran investors note that cryptocurrency surged during pandemic-era stimulus and memecoin speculation, conditions that have since faded as the market matures and competition for speculative capital intensifies.
The result is a more complex reality than the one many supporters envisioned: a pro-crypto administration has delivered symbolic wins and lighter regulation, but it has not shielded digital assets from market cycles, global economic forces, or the shifting behavior of investors.
