Melania Trump-themed memecoin MELANIA is under growing scrutiny after a series of large token sales

The Solana-based memecoin MELANIA, named after US First Lady Melania Trump, is under growing scrutiny after a series of large token sales

Solana-based meme coin MELANIA, named after US First Lady Melania Trump, is coming under increasing scrutiny following a series of large token sales linked to the project's team.

On May 3, blockchain researcher EmberCN revealed that project-linked wallets offloaded nearly 10 million MELANIA tokens in just eight days.

These sales amounted to nearly $4.6 million, raising strong concerns over the project's long-term viability and team motives.

According to the researcher, the sales followed a Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA) strategy alongside unilateral liquidity provision. These techniques allowed the project to reduce price impact while quietly exiting large positions.

Project Wallets Sell 41.67 Million MELANIA Tokens Since March

Notably, this is not the first time the project has utilized this approach. In April, the same wallets sold 3 million tokens in exchange for about 9,009 SOL—roughly $1.2 million at the time—employing a similar liquidation method.

Meanwhile, these selling activities have been ongoing for a long time. Since mid-March, the wallets have quietly liquidated around 41.67 million MELANIA tokens for around 170,000 SOL, which equals about $23 million.

EmberCN pointed out that most of these proceeds appear to have been converted to USDC and withdrawn. This suggests an ongoing effort by the project's team to exit their significant positions in the token.

The repeated and large-scale token sales by wallets tied to the project have fueled suspicions among holders.

Many now question whether the meme coin was ever designed for long-term utility or merely crafted to capitalize on the name recognition of the US first lady.

MELANIA launched in January 2025 amid media buzz, spurred by its branding and the timing of President Donald Trump's inauguration. However, that early momentum has rapidly faded amid a broader market lull that significantly impacted meme coins.

According to BeInCrypto data, the token trades at roughly $0.38, down more than 6% over the past day and 31% in the last seven days.

More notably, MELANIA has plunged approximately 97% from its January 20 peak of $13.70.