Animoca’s Yat Siu declares ‘Trump Trade’ dead; pivots to utility as APE struggles
Animoca’s co-founder downgrades the administration’s crypto impact to a “C+,” signaling a rotation from political speculation to utility as the firm eyes a public listing.
The political premium has evaporated.
The honeymoon is officially over. Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu declared the “Trump moment” for crypto finished on Sunday, marking a sharp reversal from the euphoria that followed the 2024 election. Speaking to CoinDesk, Siu argued the industry’s reliance on political tailwinds was a miscalculation, downgrading the administration’s impact on digital assets to a “B- or C+.”
Markets reacted with indifference to the macro pivot, but Animoca-linked assets showed high volatility. ApeCoin (APE) languished at $0.22 (-6%), a stark 99% drawdown from its highs, while Mocaverse (MOCA) bucked the trend, climbing 7% to $0.024 on volume of $14.7 million.
“Traders treated Trump as if crypto were his first child. In reality, we’re probably his third, fourth, or fifth child, maybe even an eighth child.”
The Reality Check
Siu’s comments dismantle the “Trump Trade” narrative that sustained Bitcoin through late 2025. The core friction point? Tariffs and interest rates. The administration’s aggressive trade policies have battered risk assets, overriding any pro-crypto deregulation efforts. Siu noted that when the White House starts a tariff war, “they are not thinking about what’s going to happen to the price of Bitcoin.”
The data supports the fatigue. Bitcoin struggled to hold $87,970 this weekend, failing to recapture the psychological $100k level many targeted for the inauguration anniversary. Liquidity has visibly rotated out of the “political side quests” (PolitiFi tokens) that dominated Q4 2024.
Institutional Context: The IPO Pivot
With the speculative fervor cooling, Animoca is forcing a rotation toward tangible equity. Siu confirmed plans for a reverse merger to list Animoca on public markets, positioning the company as a liquid “altcoin proxy” for institutional investors who can’t hold tokens directly. This aligns with the firm’s thesis that 2026 will be the “Year of the Utility Token,” prioritizing verifiable credentials and regulatory compliance over the memecoin casino.
The strategy bets heavily on the Clarity Act and GENIUS Act. Legislation expected to provide safe harbor for utility-focused assets, contrasting sharply with the chaotic regulatory enforcement of the previous cycle.
