Partnership Terms and Market Reaction
The partnership between Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) and Crypto.com was finalized in early September 2025. The core transaction involved TMTG acquiring 684.4 million CRO tokens, valued at approximately $105 million, in a deal split evenly between cash and TMTG stock. This transaction amounted to about 2% of CRO’s circulating supply.
A separate but related entity, Trump Media Group CRO Strategy, Inc., was formed with the ambition of acquiring up to 19% of the circulating CRO supply through a SPAC merger, which initially generated the $6.4 billion headline figure. The partnership also includes plans to integrate CRO as a rewards token within TMTG’s Truth Social and Truth+ platforms.
The market reaction was swift and dramatic. The announcement on August 26, 2025, triggered an immediate 40% price surge in CRO. However, this rally proved unsustainable. Within weeks, the price had retraced all its gains, falling below $0.19 and erasing over $6 billion from its market capitalization, which now stands near $6.6 billion, dropping the token to around 33rd place globally by market cap.
Drivers Behind the Decline and Fallout
The rapid reversal can be attributed to a combination of factors that shook investor confidence.
First, the market dynamics were classic “buy the rumor, sell the news.” The initial surge was driven by speculation, but once the news was out, traders took profits. This was exacerbated by a broader risk-off mood in the crypto market; for instance, Bitcoin’s price decline and a “Fear” reading on the Crypto Fear & Greed Index created a negative backdrop for all digital assets.
Second, and more critically, were project-specific concerns. The community began to question the tangible utility the partnership would bring, with some critics online labeling the Cronos chain a “ghost town” due to perceived low on-chain activity. A major point of contention was a governance decision from March 2025 to reissue 70 billion CRO tokens (previously burned in 2021) back into circulation, raising the total supply to 100 billion. This move was seen as highly inflationary and a sign of centralized control, eroding trust in the token’s scarcity. These doubts were reflected in on-chain metrics, such as a reported 27% drop in new wallet addresses on the Cronos network.
While the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had closed an investigation into Crypto.com in March 2025 without charges, the regulatory scrutiny itself had previously contributed to selling pressure. The cumulative effect has been a souring of sentiment, creating challenges for adoption, liquidity, and trust among retail holders, builders, and exchanges.
The path to restoring confidence now hinges on concrete delivery. The market will be watching for the actual deployment of CRO within TMTG’s products and clear demonstrations of how the token integrates into Crypto.com‘s long-term roadmap. Key metrics to watch include on-chain activity, official communications, and any further changes to token supply or governance.
