A sudden wave of selling swept through the TRUMP token market when two major holders moved a staggering 3.7 million tokens onto Binance just days before an on-chain snapshot was scheduled to record wallet balances. This latest dump did not come out of nowhere; it follows a pattern of large-scale exits that began in late March. On March 29, one whale unloaded 743,000 tokens for roughly $7.9 million, realizing a $3.3 million loss compared to its original purchase price. Less than six weeks later, on May 4, two other wallets together sold 765,128 tokens, bringing in $8.58 million but still crystallizing a $1.42 million shortfall. Combined with the recent 3.7 million token transfer, these moves have off-loaded over 5 million TRUMP tokens from concentrated whale addresses since late March.
The timing of these transfers is no coincidence. Blockchain projects routinely use snapshots-recorded at a specific block height, to determine who qualifies for airdrops, governance voting rights, or participation in exclusive events. By capturing each address’s balance at a single moment, snapshots ensure a transparent basis for distributing new tokens or allocating decision-making power. However, because tokens held in omnibus wallets on centralized exchanges like Binance are merged and cannot be tied to individual users, those balances often don’t count toward on-chain eligibility. As a result, traders with large positions face a choice before each snapshot: consolidate holdings in self-custody to secure rewards, or move to exchanges to liquidate ahead of anticipated price swings.
In the case of TRUMP, whales appear to have chosen the latter. After several weeks of declining prices, they may have decided it was better to lock in what value remained rather than risk deeper losses when smaller holders reacted to the snapshot results. Moreover, rumors that the upcoming distribution could impose onerous lock-up periods, unfavorable conversion ratios, or even token burns have likely soured sentiment further, pushing large stakeholders to exit rather than accept new terms. Supply concentration amplifies these effects, with more than 70% of circulating TRUMP tokens controlled by a handful of wallets, any substantial shift into exchange order books can trigger cascading sell orders and steep price drops.
The immediate impact of depositing 3.7 million tokens onto Binance was a sharp increase in selling pressure and heightened volatility as the snapshot approached. Retail traders, observing whales capitulating, reacted with their own sell orders, deepening the slide and draining liquidity from order books. Yet once the snapshot finalized and the frenzy of pre-snapshot positioning subsided, opportunistic buyers could wade in to scoop up bargains, although sustained whale withdrawals suggest that any rebound may be short-lived.
Ultimately, this pre-snapshot exodus of 3.7 million TRUMP tokens underscores a critical juncture for the project. Driven by profit-taking, fear of punitive snapshot terms, and an expectation of post-snapshot sell-offs, major holders have signaled a lack of faith in the token’s near-term prospects. Whether the market can find a new support level or continues its downward spiral will depend on how selling pressure evolves once the snapshot is behind us and on the next moves, from those same colossal whale wallets.
