Donald Trump indictment breathes life into his NFT trading card collection

Donald Trump trading card NFT sales have spiked more than 500% in the last 24 hours, following news that the former president was indicted by a New York grand jury. 

Thursday night, when the news hit, more than $50,000 worth of the Trump caricature-emblazoned digital cards changed hands, according to CryptoSlam data. About $184,000 of the cards have been sold in the last 24 hours. The floor price currently stands at 0.58 ETH, or about $1,000, according to OpenSea.

While there seems to be a buzz of market activity, trading volume has historically been a lot higher for the former president-themed collection. In December, the 45,000 item NFT collection sold out within hours, with more than $3.9 million in sales on the day. Since then, there have been days with as much as $469,000 worth of NFTs changing hands. 

Buying an NFT automatically entered the purchaser into a sweepstake, with prizes including a group cocktail party at Mar-A-Lago, a dinner in Miami or a golfing trip with the former president, or a group Zoom call. Purchasing 45 or more NFTs would “guarantee” purchasers an invite to a gala dinner with Trump in South Florida, the initial announcement said. 

Trump NFT gold rush

The mint may have netted Trump almost $4.5 million. Creator fees set by OpenSea also give a 10% royalty on secondary sales, meaning the project will already have accrued upward of $100,000 from trades to date. The highest sale to date was a black and white rendered image of Trump with a Santa hat on, which sold for 23.99 ETH, or $42,900. 

As for the indictment, the exact charges are still unknown because it is under seal, but they relate to a hush money payment Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen made to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. 

Trump is expected to appear in person for his arraignment next week, which may be as early as Tuesday. That’s the first time the charges against him will be read in open court.

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