Donald Trump’s foray into the crypto scene has been quite timely. There is more excitement around cryptocurrency than ever before, especially when it comes to newer tokens. Many popular sites offer a crypto presale list, and investors happily flock to them in search of recommendations. It comes as no surprise, then, that a token backed by the most powerful man in the world saw such attention.
Trump’s Crypto Journey
To Trump’s credit, he had been dipping his toes into the blockchain space since 2022, when he released a line of controversial NFTs. But it was earlier this year when he released his TRUMP meme coin that his ambitions reached full swing. Launched in the run-up to the inauguration, the TRUMP tokens quickly saw hundreds of millions of dollars in investment.
The value of the token swiftly took a nose dive, however, with some even suggesting that it was a scam. But a few weeks ago, Trump reignited interest in the meme coin by announcing that the top 220 investors over a certain period of time would win a private dinner with him. This saw them racing to snatch up the token and snag a coveted place in Trump’s audience.
According to analysts, the amount of money spent to secure tickets was anywhere from tens of thousands of dollars to millions. And now that the dinner has been held, the response has been mixed. While it saw attendance from the likes of Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, the entrance to the venue was picketed by protesters.
When high-profile attendees like former NBA player Lamar Odom arrived, they were met with heckles and condemnation for their association with Trump. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel also made fun of the occasion on an episode of his show
“Tonight, President Trump hosted a private dinner for the top 200 holders of his meme coin. Yep, over 200 crypto bros in one room. Even Satan’s like, ‘Now, that’s hell,” he said.
Trump’s Token Moving Forward
With the dinner complete, all that is left to see is if the Trump token continues with this momentum or sees yet another steep decline. It will also be interesting to see how this goes on to affect policy. There’s already a proposed build that would ban public office holders from releasing meme coins, and if this makes progress with regulators, Trump and other such politicians could see their crypto ambitions thwarted.
Either way, it is clear that the Trump coin has made an impact on the crypto sector. It has brought up both an industry and a policy-based discussion about the ethics of meme coins, and one way or the other, it will continue to influence crypto.
