TRUMP token tanks 96% while Bitcoin surges on Iran concerns

The Official Trump (TRUMP) meme coin lost 96% of its value, while Bitcoin rose to about $70,000 as tensions with Iran eased. TRUMP launched in January 2025 on the Solana blockchain and has steadily lost value as investor enthusiasm fades and broader crypto capital shifts toward more established assets. 

Bitcoin increased back to $70,800 from $65,600, while the Trump token dropped from its all-time high of $73.43 recorded in January 2025 to about $2.90.

Bitcoin increases to about $70,000

Many investors bought Bitcoin after the recent drop, raising the price by 5% from around $65,618 to roughly $70,800. Rising tensions with Iran triggered a chain of events that led to Bitcoin’s earlier price decline. News about the conflict sparked panic, driving oil prices from about $62 per barrel to nearly $120, and central banks responded with high interest rates, which discouraged investors from risk assets like crypto.

Equity markets also played a role in BTC’s rise, as Bitcoin has an 85% correlation with the Nasdaq-100 index, so prices rose as stock prices recovered.

The total value of the cryptocurrency market rose back to about $2.33 trillion, as other assets like Ethereum increased to $2,059, up roughly 3% to 4%. Solana also trades around $87 after rising 4% to 5%, while XRP increased by 4% as well.

According to market data, Bitcoin dominance increased to about 56%, while blockchain data shows that whale wallets have accumulated roughly 270,000 BTC (nearly $19 billion) over the past month.

Similarly, more investors now prefer to hold their coins longer rather than sell them, as the amount of Bitcoin sent to exchanges dropped in recent weeks.

Investors lose interest in the Trump meme coin

While Bitcoin saw huge gains, the Official Trump meme coin has declined from its January 2025 peak of $73.43 and now trades around $2.90 (a drop of about 96%).

This type of extreme movement is common for meme-based cryptocurrencies because they depend on excitement, online attention, and community hype that always fades.

The hype around the Trump meme coin exploded across social media when President Trump took office in January 2025, raising demand and attracting many short-term traders looking to profit from the wave. This attention drove the coin’s price up quickly, but it soon began to fall as enthusiasm faded.

Unlike Bitcoin and other major assets that benefit from global trading activity and institutional investment, meme coins rely on market sentiment and public interest, so the prices weaken quickly when this interest fades.

In fact, the TRUMP token dropped by more than 15% over the past week, even as the wider crypto market saw huge gains.

Meanwhile, people also say the token’s poor performance is tied to public sentiment toward the figure associated with the brand. Polling averages and prediction markets show a significant number of negative views of the brand, which always translate into price changes.

The WLFI token by the World Liberty Financial project also dropped to about $0.094, but later recovered to around $0.10, which is still 69% below its highest recorded price. The project is associated with the same brand as the Trump meme coin and continues to experience volatility, despite recent developments in decentralized finance.

On the other hand, smaller speculative tokens are more susceptible to fluctuations in interest and mood. They can easily shoot up in price if people are enthusiastic about them, and just as quickly fall if interest wanes. As a result, there is more volatility in this part of the market.

The US and Israel carried out strikes on Iran starting February 28, 2026, that disrupted tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important energy routes in the world. Almost 20% of the global oil supply passes through this narrow waterway, so the war caused a supply shock. And the market reacted almost instantly. 

Brent crude rose from around $60 per barrel to above $100, then peaked at around $120 before settling between $90 and $103, according to multiple data sources, including Binance research on how oil shocks affect inflation and markets.

In the first two weeks of the conflict, Bitcoin reacted strongly to news and short-term sentiment, gaining about 8% before pulling back. The energy market proved even more sensitive to supply disruptions, with oil recording the strongest reaction, with prices rising about 45%.

Gold, on the other hand, dipped slightly but remained strong because demand remained steady.

Bitcoin trades like tech stocks as macro pressure exposes its limits

Bitcoin moves in the same direction as the stock market, a correlation of about 0.55 with the S&P 500, but the early phase of the Iran shock showed BTC has about an 87% correlation with the Nasdaq. 

To put it simply, Bitcoin behaves like part of the system rather than an independent asset because it moves like stocks, especially tech stocks, so low liquidity means a weaker BTC price.

Similarly, high interest rates affect Bitcoin, as borrowing becomes more expensive and companies struggle to raise money, stock prices fall, and BTC follows suit. 

In fact, the Federal Reserve is operating in a “higher for longer” environment, and inflation isn’t low enough to allow for easy policy changes, as it still sits around 2.4% to 2.7%.

Compared to gold, the difference is massive because gold is used as a reserve asset and is part of long-term strategies, so liquidity doesn’t have as much effect on it as it does on Bitcoin. 

The idea of Bitcoin as “Digital Gold” wasn’t entirely wrong, as it appeared to work for a period of time. However, the current global environment proves that the idea wasn’t complete and is now breaking under pressure.

Bitcoin is not what many people first believed it to be, but it still plays a vital role, and the key is understanding that role clearly, without relying on an incomplete narrative.