Richard Dawkins first coined the concept of a ‘meme’ in his seminal book The Selfish Gene.
He defined it as ‘an idea, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture’.
Like dominant genes, dominant memes replicate fast.
They win out over opposing ideas and define society just as biological cells do in our bodies.
Today, internet memes are a part of this never-ending fight.
Although they’re often humorous, they usually have a deeper point.
They’re how ideas take hold and enter the public zeitgeist. They help people form and solidify opinions.
With that in mind, check out this picture from Sunday’s assassination attempt:
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| Source: Evan Vucci |
Have you ever seen a more iconic image?
Shot by Evan Vucci, the Pulitzer-winning photographer for the AP News.
Bloodied, defiant, standing straight, fist in the air, Stars and Stripes waving in the background.
Hollywood couldn’t do a better job!
And no matter what your politics are, I think we can all admire the sheer courage of the moment (or, if you’re more cynical, the sheer media savviness!).
The thing is, this image is already spawning a thousand memes.
While some are funny, many amplify the courage of Trump under fire or the more conspirational questions of who might be behind the shooting.
Like this one:
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| Source: Wio News |
This might sound silly to you…
But I genuinely think the original image — and its memetic effects — wins Trump the election.
And I’m not the only one.
On prediction markets, his chances shot up 5% percentage points in the minutes after the shooting:
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| Source: PredictIt |
After Biden’s debate debacle, Trump was already on a roll. But this incident has increased his momentum.
Similarly, Ronald Regan’s approval rating shot up 22% after he was shot in 1981.
Look, I’m making no case about the politics of this. I’m just saying it as I see it playing out.
So, my point today is this…
With four months until the US election, how are you positioned for a Trump win?
What investing moves should you make now?
In my opinion, one asset stands head and shoulders above all else.
Let me explain…
Trump Coin goes bananas
If there’s one area of the investment market that thrives on memes, it’s crypto.
There’s even an entire category of cryptocurrencies called meme coins!
There’s no inherent value in meme coins other than their desirability, and they trade on the pure mechanics of supply and demand.
Check out this chart:
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| Source: Coingecko |
This is a project called Trump Coin, and naturally enough, trades under the ticker ‘MAGA’!
As you can see, it shot up 30% in the minutes after the shooting.
More amazingly, it’s up 49,117% over the past 12 months!
Now, to be clear, this project has no utility or fundamental value. It’s more akin to a collectible than an investment.
And even though you can make big money trading meme coins (and lose big money, too!), I don’t play in this space when it comes to crypto.
Because here’s the thing…
There are plenty of worthwhile projects that AREN’T just memes.
There are real projects with real fundamental value and real use cases. And you can still make huge money when you land on a good one.
This isn’t just me saying this these days, either.
Forget what you hear elsewhere — make no mistake — the biggest companies in the world are all working feverishly to gain a foothold in the coming crypto landscape.
Consider these recent examples…
Last week, the US$105 billion Japanese company Sony announced it’s launching a cryptocurrency exchange.
Morgan Stanley is about to let its 15,000-advisor network recommend Bitcoin for the first time.
Europe’s largest telecom company, Deutsche Telekom, announced they’re entering the Bitcoin mining industry.
But even for ‘real’ projects, memes will play a part in driving adoption.
For example, this month saw billionaire Michael Dell — owner of Dell Computers — tweeting things like this:
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| Source: x.com |
The tweet was a response to a tweet from MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor saying that Bitcoin was ‘digital scarcity.’
The idea conveyed is that Dell is ‘greedily gobbling up’ his share of ‘scarce’ Bitcoin.
However, we haven’t heard any confirmation that he is.
Now, this might sound a bit crass to you. The idea that silly images like this can influence the value of something.
But consider this…
Society is constructed on many shared ideas that we implicitly agree to follow.
But these ideas are only as solid as the belief we have in them.
No belief is so ingrained and powerful as money.
Now, that’s a deep topic and not a rabbit hole I’ll go down today.
All I’ll say is that, like it or not, Bitcoin is redefining what many people think money should be.
And this is where a potential Trump Presidency comes in…
A US 180 incoming
Donald Trump recently mellowed his stance on Bitcoin and crypto, saying:
‘I will ensure that the future of crypto and bitcoin will be made in the USA, not driven overseas. I will support the right to self-custody to the nation’s 50 million crypto holders.’
He’s even scheduled to make a talk at the upcoming Bitcoin Conference on July 27th.
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| Source: Crypto Slate |
This is a big deal for crypto holders.
You’ve got to understand that the US under the Democrats has hampered adoption for years.
Left-wing powerbroker Elizabeth Warren even stated she would lead an ‘anti-crypto army’ into this election.
It seems that under Trump, the Republican party are going the opposite way.
And bigly!
Get this…
Cynthia Lummis, a Republican Senator for Wyoming, was on TV over the weekend saying the US should hold ‘Bitcoin in reserve’ to help the US dollar remain strong!
Another little-known fact?
The USA is already the biggest holder of Bitcoin when it comes to nation-states:
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| Source: X.com |
Incidentally, in a blunder that mirrors the UK’s famous sell-down of gold 25 years ago (which cost the UK an estimated US$21 billion today), the German government just sold off 50,000 Bitcoin they’d confiscated from criminals.
As I wrote to subscribers of my Crypto Capital service on Thursday:
‘They’re selling the hardest, most scarce monetary commodity that’s ever existed and exchanging it into a currency they can print at will.
‘What buffoons!!!
‘I reckon this will go down as one of the biggest financial blunders of all time.’
The Germans sold almost US$3 billion of BTC in just one week, but the new Bitcoin ETFs hoovered it all, with barely a dent in the price.
This chart shows these ETFs just made a new all-time of US$15.6 billion, completely counteracting the German sell-off.
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| Source: x.com |
What this shows is just how much demand there is for Bitcoin amongst the US institutional class already and the price is already starting to move higher.
And with the German selling pressure gone, what happens next?
We’ll see soon enough…
I should also point out that the Trump angle is just one part of Bitcoin’s overall trajectory.
The bigger story is that global liquidity taps are set to be turned back on soon.
And as this chart shows, that usually augurs well for the price of Bitcoin:
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| Source: CMT |
It’s not too late to add some Bitcoin exposure to your portfolio.
And these days, you can do it easily through new, listed products like Monochrome’s spot Bitcoin ETF, which trades under the ticker “IBTC” on the ASX.
Or, if you’re interested in exploring the wider world of opportunities in the crypto space, you can join one of my Crypto Capital services by going here.
It really feels like we’re about to see a seismic shift in how the US political apparatus views Bitcoin.
Now is the time to consider grabbing your stake before November’s fireworks play out in earnest…
Regards,
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Ryan Dinse,
Editor, Crypto Capital and Alpha Tech Trader
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