Solana’s SOL token rocketed after a memecoin linked to President-elect Donald Trump launched on the popular blockchain network.

The price of SOL was up by more than 12% Saturday, according to Coin Metrics. Earlier, it surged nearly 23%. Ether, one of its main competitors, fell 7%.

The moves began late Friday after the launch of a new memecoin announced on Trump’s social media accounts and issued on the Solana blockchain. “Official Trump” (TRUMP) has attracted more than $5 billion since then to become the largest memecoin on the Solana network, according to CoinGecko.

That move came ahead of Trump’s inauguration Monday, which is widely expected to usher in a new era of innovation and productivity in the crypto industry, and on the day crypto villain Gary Gensler ended his term as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Solana is the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, excluding stablecoins. It was created in 2020 as a faster and cheaper alternative to Ethereum and now hosts some of the most popular memecoins like dogwifhat and Pudgy Penguins, as well as decentralized finance (DeFi) and gaming projects.

The token has become so popular asset managers are seeking to issue exchange traded funds tracking its price. The decision deadline for potential ETFs from Bitwise, VanEck, 21Shares and Canary is approaching Jan. 25. ProShares on Friday evening also filed for four different ETFs based on SOL. If approved this year, SOL ETFs may only attract a fraction of the assets that flowed into bitcoin ETFs in their first year of trading, according to JPMorgan.

SOL gained 85% in 2024. It’s now up 25% this year.

With the prospect of TikTok disappearing in the U.S., creators on the app spent the week posting heartfelt goodbyes to their fans.

“I never even in a million years ever thought that anybody would ever just care about what I say,” Kimberly Rhoades, a creator of humorous videos, told her 3 million followers on Thursday. “If this app goes away, it was a beautiful, beautiful ride.”

A day later, the Supreme Court ruled 9-0 to uphold the law requiring a forced sale of TikTok by Chinese-parent ByteDance or a ban of the app in the U.S. The short-form video app that rose to mainstream popularity and changed the way Americans consumed social media while stuck indoors during the pandemic is set to go dark as soon as Sunday, meaning it could disappear from the web and be removed from app stores run by Apple and Google.

Congress passed the law, signed by President Joe Biden, citing national security concerns due to TikTok’s data collection practices and ties to China.

In a follow-up video on Friday, Rhoades hummed about 30 seconds of “Taps,” the military song often played at funerals. She ended by saying, “It was an honor making you laugh.”

TikTok’s fate in the U.S. now lies in the hands of President-elect Donald Trump,  who originally favored a TikTok ban during his first administration, but has since flip-flopped on the matter. In December, Trump asked the Supreme Court to pause the law’s implementation and allow his administration “the opportunity to pursue a political resolution of the questions at issue in the case.”

In a Friday post on his social media app Truth Social, Trump wrote, “My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!” TikTok CEO Shou Chew is one of several tech leaders expected to be in attendance at Trump’s inauguration in Washington, D.C., on Monday. In a short video, Chew thanked Trump “for his commitment to work with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available” in the U.S.

Whether Trump ultimately finds a way to keep the app alive for American consumers, many TikTok creators have been preparing for an end, telling their fans to find them on other social platforms such as Google’s YouTube and Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, CNBC previously reported. RedNote, a Chinese social media app and TikTok look-alike, rose to the top of Apple’s app store on Monday, indicating that TikTok’s millions of users were seeking alternatives.

The creator migration appears to have picked up steam as the ban deadline approached. Influencers like Megan Cruz used their farewell videos as an opportunity to tout the attributes of TikTok.

“People were engaged with things like BookTok and FilmTok and the idea of being engaged in culture on TikTok because you didn’t have to be a big creator,” said Cruz, in a video posted earlier this week. “There was incentive for people to join the conversation because anyone had the potential to be a leader in a conversation, to make a point that resonated with millions of people.”

The history of TikTok as a viral sensation dates back to 2017, when ByteDance spent about $1 billion to acquire a startup called Musical.ly. ByteDance combined Musical.ly and TikTok the following year.

TikTok began making headway in the U.S. around that time, primarily as an app that young people used for short dance clips and lip-syncing videos. TikTok’s big break came during the pandemic lockdowns of 2020, when consumers were looking for ways to pass the time and connect with others online.

The app was so successful that internet giants Meta and Google launched copycat services. Meta introduced Reels for U.S. Instagram users in August 2020 and then added it to Facebook. Google rolled out YouTube Shorts in the U.S. in March 2021.

Despite the competition, TikTok continued to grow. 

TikTok has about 115 million monthly active users in the U.S., compared to 258 million for YouTube, 253 million for Facebook and 131 million for Instagram, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

Though TikTok lags its rivals in total users, the Chinese app has become a hub for creators, defined as users with more than 1,000 followers. TikTok has nearly 8.5 million users in the U.S. who fit that category, compared with about 5.2 million on Instagram and 1.1 million on YouTube, according to HypeAuditor, an influencer marketing platform. 

Businessman Frank McCourt’s internet advocacy group Project Liberty announced on Jan. 9, that it had submitted a proposal to buy TikTok from ByteDance at undisclosed terms. McCourt told CNBC on Friday that “we, I believe, are the only bidder” that meets the necessary criteria of disentangling the technology from the Chinese algorithm.

If ByteDance decides to sell, potential buyers may have to spend between $40 billion and $50 billion, according to a valuation estimate of TikTok’s U.S. operations from CFRA Research Senior Vice President Angelo Zino. 

Some creators, anticipating a shutdown, are letting their fans know where they can find them. Others are encouraging users not to follow them on Meta’s services, or encouraging them to take a break from social media altogether. 

“I’ve been hearing a lot of people say that once TikTok is gone, you’re just going to cut social media out of your life and I encourage that – it’ll probably be really healthy for you,” said Jack Ryan, a creator with 2 million TikTok followers, in a video on Thursday thanking his fans for their support. 

“I do have an Instagram. I do have a sizable following on there, but don’t follow me on Instagram,” Ryan added. “Don’t go on there. It’s brain rot. It’s gross.”

Jonas Gindin, who has more than 400,000 Tiktok followers, said in a video that a year and a half ago he was waiting tables while trying to become an actor in Los Angeles. He wasn’t having much luck.

After finding a fanbase on TikTok, Gindin said he’s managed to produce content full-time on the app. 

“If we’re cooked, it’s been a ride, man,” Gindin said. “Anytime I see someone comment something positive, it means the world, bro.”

WATCH: Up to Apple and Google if they want to keep TikTok on their app stores, says NSA’s Gerstell

San Francisco, famed for its abundance of hoodie-clad tech workers, was overrun by thousands of executives in suits this week for JPMorgan‘s annual health-care conference.

Leaders from major health systems, venture capital firms and companies around the globe clustered in hotel lobbies to talk business and strategy for 2025. The sunny skies were a welcome reprieve from the downpours of years past, but other absences were harder to ignore.

This year’s conference, colloquially known as JPM, took place a month after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot in New York City. The news was welcomed by Americans with numerous social media posts expressing resentment toward the health-care industry, with many sharing stories about their negative experiences with insurers. 

More than 10 companies, including Cigna and Walgreens, subsequently pulled their appearances at JPM, according to CNBC’s analysis of the conference agenda. There was a noticeably large police presence at the conference’s main venue, the Westin St. Francis Hotel, and many companies beefed up security at their private events and parties. 

“The subterranean topic that I think people are talking about around the water and the cocktails is obviously what happened to the UnitedHealthcare CEO,” said Wei-Li Shao, president of metabolic health startup Omada. “What does that mean for health-care? What transformation should occur? And how do things get more responsible?” 

Thompson’s murder was a “stunning, sad event” that has served as a wake up call for the health-care industry, said Erik Wexler, CEO of the nonprofit health system Providence, which is made up of 51 hospitals and 1,000 clinics across seven states.

“Why are we on a separate pathway here? Why are we fighting?” Wexler said. “Our job is to do good for people who desperately need us at the most important time of their lives, whether you’re the payer or you’re the hospital.”

While Thompson’s death loomed large over the conference, there was also palpable excitement and buzz about 2025. There was no shortage of discussions about the potential benefits of artificial intelligence and the blockbuster weight loss drugs called GLP-1s, and investors seem cautiously optimistic that the digital health market could turn a corner.  

“There are so many amazing things on the horizon for health-care,” said Dexcom CEO Kevin Sayer.

“Drug companies and companies like ours, we try real hard to improve people’s lives, and we make a huge difference,” said Sayer, who knew Thompson well. “Be a little optimistic and give us a bit of a break, we’re all trying to do good stuff.”

Here are CNBC’s big takeaways from JPM 2025:

Generative AI stole the show

Generative AI was undoubtedly health-care’s “it girl” of 2024, and that seems unlikely to change in 2025. 

Health systems in the U.S. are struggling to contend with burnout, staffing shortages and razor thin margins, so companies are racing to develop AI tools that can streamline some of the industry’s more tedious administrative tasks. The subject was practically impossible to avoid at JPM. 

For instance, health-care payments company Waystar announced a new generative AI feature that aims to help doctors quickly fight insurance denials by automatically drafting appeal letters. Amazon Web Services and the venture firm General Catalyst announced a new partnership that aims to speed up the development and deployment of health-care AI tools. Health-care startup Abridge announced Mayo Clinic will roll out its AI-powered clinical documentation technology to around 2,000 clinicians across the entire enterprise.

“At the highest level, I don’t think it can be understated how much impact AI is already creating in health-care,” said Dr. Shiv Rao, founder and CEO of Abridge. “At least in our segment, the feedback that we get on a daily basis is just incredible, and the adoption rate demonstrates that this is a real thing.”

Nvidia, which makes the hardware that powers AI applications, was a particularly popular attendee at JPM this year. The company announced partnerships with several health-care organizations including the clinical research provider IQVIA, neurotech startup Synchron, genomics company Illumina and academic medical center Mayo Clinic. 

“We’re well over a billion dollar business between direct revenue and revenue with our partners,” said Kimberly Powell, Nvidia’s vice president of health-care. She added that Nvidia sees more room for growth for AI health-care applications.

Executives are bullish on GLP-1s 

At presentations and cocktail parties this week, CNBC spoke with executives who marveled about the benefits of the booming class of weight loss drugs known as GLP-1s. 

Novo Nordisk’s and Eli Lilly’s diabetes and obesity treatments have been wildly successful at helping patients lose weight in recent years. A May study found that patients taking Novo‘s obesity drug Wegovy maintained an average of 10% weight loss for up to four years, for instance. 

Research shows that GLP-1s could also help treat cardiometabolic disease, kidney disease and addiction, among other conditions. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Lilly’s weight loss drug Zepbound as a treatment for sleep apnea in December. 

Some analysts estimate that anti-obesity medications could grow into a $100 billion industry by the end of the decade.

“These drugs are remarkable, and they’re not going away,” Dexcom’s Sayer said. 

Supply shortages are one of the big hurdles for companies in the market, as soaring demand has made it difficult for many patients to access the treatments. The drugs typically cost $1,000 per month without insurance, and coverage still varies for many Americans.

Even so, many health-care executives are optimistic that GLP-1s will meaningfully improve public health in the U.S.

“I have been joking, it’s been the two G’s, right? It’s like, GLP, GPT,” Omada CEO Sean Duffy said.

Uncertainty around the Trump administration

Ahead of President-elect Donald Trump‘s Monday inauguration, executives at JPM had many unanswered questions about what his administration has in store for the health-care sector. 

Health-care was not a big focus for Trump on the campaign trail, which means his policy aims for the industry are murky. Additionally, he’s made some controversial cabinet picks since the election. 

Trump nominated vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, celebrity TV host Dr. Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and pancreatic surgeon Dr. Marty Makary to lead the Food and Drug Administration. All three nominees still need Senate confirmation. 

“Until we have a little bit more visibility into this administration that’s coming in in the U.S., the market is going to be volatile and somewhat more depressed,” Rebecca Stevenson, HSBC’s head of health-care investment banking for the Americas, told reporters during a roundtable. 

Owen Tripp, the CEO of the virtual care platform Included Health, said the Trump administration appears to be business friendly and has suggested it will push for increased access to care. 

“It’s not even so much who’s in the White House, but actually the fact that you’ve got a Republican Congress and Senate that have on principle aligned with expanding access and transparency,” Tripp said. “I think you’re going to see more transparency on drug pricing and health care pricing too, which is also hugely positive.”

Watch: UnitedHealthcare tragedy is a wakeup call for corporate America, says Wharton’s Americus Reed