Buyers of U.S. President Donald Trump’s meme coin converged from around the globe on Thursday for an exclusive dinner at his private country club that was closed to media.
As guests filed into the event, and President Trump arrived by Marine One helicopter, more than a hundred protesters demonstrated outside the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. Signs included, “America is not for sale,” and “stop crypto corruption,” and “release the guest list.”
Trump spent about an hour at the club. In a video posted on social media by a meme coin contest dinner guest, he told the assembled, “I always put the country way ahead of the business.…You become president of the United States, and you want to see people thrive and succeed.”
In total, investors spent an estimated $148 million US on the $TRUMP meme coin to secure their seats at the dinner, with the top-25 holders spending more than $111 million, according to crypto intelligence firm Inca Digital.
These top holders enjoyed a private VIP reception with Trump, and the four largest investors also received a limited edition Trump Tourbillon watch that sells for $100,000.
A company controlled by the Trump family and a second firm together hold 80 per cent of the remaining supply of $TRUMP coins and have so far earned $320.19 million in fees, including at least $1.35 million after the dinner announcement, according to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.
More than half of the 220 holders who attended the black-tie event are likely based outside the United States, according to blockchain analysis.
First-place donor recently under investigation
Among those in attendance was China-born crypto entrepreneur and billionaire Justin Sun, who posted a video of himself, underscored by triumphant music, entering the ballroom and dressed in a tux. Sun won first place in the dinner contest with his $18.5 million US wallet and is also an adviser to World Liberty Financial, the Trump family’s crypto platform.
Sun, who saw a 2023 fraud case brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission dropped by the agency in February, declined to comment but posted on X that he is “grateful for the invitation.”
Vincent Liu, chief investment officer of Taiwan-based crypto market maker Kronos Research, said he had hopes of networking with other top holders and even possibly meeting the president.
“That kind of access is rare, and it represents how digital assets are entering the mainstream.”
Sheldon Zia, founder of the Cayman Islands-based crypto exchange BitMart, posted on X prior to the event that, as a top-25 holder, he was heading to not just the dinner but also to a private VIP cocktail reception before the dinner and a private VIP tour the following day.
In response to criticisms about Trump using his office to enrich himself from the meme coin, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Thursday: “All of the president’s assets are in a blind trust, which is managed by his children. And I would argue, one of the many reasons that the American people re-elected this president back to this office is because he was a very successful businessman before giving it up to publicly serve our country.”
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U.S. President Donald Trump launched his own cryptocurrency meme coin, $TRUMP, in January, and this week he’s hosting the White House’s first-ever cryptocurrency summit. The CBC’s Nora Young explains why the president’s interest in crypto — including plans to create a national reserve of the digital currency — is setting off alarms.
‘Distasteful’ distraction: pro-Trump crypto investor
Senior Democratic members of the House and Senate held a news conference earlier Thursday to highlight what they describe as Trump’s corrupt crypto practices and to push for legislation that would ban such activities.
“Donald Trump’s dinner is an orgy of corruption,” said Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Connecticut Sen.Chris Murphy noted the anonymity of attendees.
“Reportedly, there’s going to be a guy there tonight called Ogle,” Murphy said. “That’s it. That’s all we know about this guy.”
When reached for comment by Reuters, Ogle — who also serves as an advisor to Trump’s cryptocurrency platform — said Murphy’s accusations were “misplaced.” He said he uses a pseudonym and appears in video interviews with his face obscured by a bandana and sunglasses to protect himself because of safety concerns related to his pro bono work, in which he says he has helped victims of crypto criminals recover lost money.
Of all of the Trump family’s cascade of new crypto ventures, which now include a crypto exchange, a stablecoin, a bitcoin mining operation and digital asset ETFs, the meme coin has sparked particularly strident criticism from Democratic lawmakers and government watchdog groups, who have decried it as “a race to the bottom for presidential grifting.”
Trump’s wife Melania has her own meme coin, and Trump’s sons, Eric and Don Jr. — who are running the Trump Organization while their father is president — announced they are partnering with an existing firm to create a crypto mining company.
Wyoming Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a robust and staunch crypto industry advocate, said the dinner gave her “pause.”
Nic Carter, a Trump supporter and partner at the crypto investment firm Castle Island Ventures, called the dinner “distasteful and an unnecessary distraction” in comments to The Associated Press.
“We would much rather that he passes common sense legislation and leave it at that,” said Carter.
Big investors reap rewards
Since the $TRUMP meme coin launched in January, the profits have favoured big investors: more than 60 large wallets have profited close to $1.5 billion, with $48 million in profits occurring after Trump posted about the contest on social media, according to reviews by Inca Digital and crypto analytics tracker Bubblemaps, as of May 8.
Meanwhile, about 600,000 other smaller wallets have lost $3.87 billion so far, with $117 million of the losses occurring after the dinner announcement.
The event was capped off with an after-party, called “Meme The Night,” thrown by a Singapore-based meme-coin engagement company called MemeCore.
MemeCore’s co-founder, who goes by the name Ice, traversed the planet to attend the dinner after spending more than $16 million to come in second place.
