🔗 Share this article First Lady's Meme Coin Architects Hit with Pump-and-Dump Fraud Lawsuit The designers behind a digital token released by US First Lady Melania Trump are now charged in court filings of orchestrating a market manipulation plot. Coin Release and Value Spike The $MELANIA cryptocurrency were made available for a minimal price each on January 19th, just prior to former President Trump was inaugurated. Together with the $MELANIA coin, the former president launched his $TRUMP coin a few hours before the presidential inauguration. Within hours, the price of the $MELANIA token soared to over $13 per token. Sudden Collapse in Value Nevertheless, the market price then collapsed almost as quickly, and is now only about 10 cents – less than one percent of its highest value. Meanwhile, the $TRUMP coin achieved a maximum of $45.47 and now trades for $5.79. Court Claims and Investors' Arguments The plaintiffs assert that the coin's creators planned the scheme conscious that the digital currency's value would crash. Mrs. Trump personally is not included in the legal action. Investors clarified they do not think she was culpable, but charged the blockchain organizations of using her and other familiar faces as window dressing for their illegal activities. Trading Venue Involvement According to recently submitted court papers, claimants allege officials of the Meteora cryptocurrency exchange, where $MELANIA was initially traded, of establishing a plan that allowed them to indirectly purchase substantial volumes of the cryptocurrency. Associated individuals then rapidly offloaded these digital currencies, securing large returns while triggering the market to collapse, according to papers submitted in New York federal court. Broader Context The charges regarding the Melania token have been included in court cases involving several other virtual tokens, which began in April. Trump-associated entities has according to reports secured over one billion dollars in pre-tax earnings from multiple cryptocurrency-related enterprises and organizations over the previous twelve months.