The meme cryptocurrency $TRUMP, which lacks traditional financial backing, has been traded online since early this year. Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis estimates it has generated over $320 million in fees for promoters during this period.
An event promoted by Trump is set to take place on May 22 at his golf club near Washington, with attendance by the top 220 holders of the $TRUMP cryptocurrency. The top 25 holders will have the opportunity to meet Trump at a reception.
“Let the President know how many $TRUMP coins you hold!” the meme coin’s website proclaims.
Trading activity for the meme cryptocurrency, as well as its price, increased following the announcement of the dinner.
Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, was created post-2008 financial crisis as a digital currency free from bank or government control.
Trump’s meme coins can be traded on a decentralized market independently of intermediaries.
When $TRUMP launched, its creators released an initial 20% of the planned 1 billion units. Half of this was sold directly to the public, with the other half placed in a liquidity pool.
The company’s website states that CIC Digital, a Trump Organization affiliate, and another entity earn trading revenue from these meme coins.
Through the liquidity pool, the creators profit by charging small fees on every transaction.
Chainalysis reported gains of over $1.3 million in trading fees for the $TRUMP creators in the week following the event announcement.
The cryptocurrency’s value surged from around $9 to approximately $14 immediately after the announcement.
The remaining 80% of the meme coins is allocated to CIC Digital and another entity, still locked.
An ethical agreement restricts Trump from everyday decisions at Trump Organization during his presidency, and keeps financial details about its businesses from him.
In an NBC Meet the Press interview, Trump stated that he hasn’t followed his meme coin’s price fluctuations, denying presidential profiteering accusations.
He also dismissed suggestions to forgo any potential crypto-related profits.
“Should I contribute properties I’ve owned for years just because I’m President and doing a good job? I think not,” Trump commented.
The team behind Trump’s cryptocurrencies is keenly promoting opportunities to meet the President.
“Good news! President Trump is allowing one more person to join the Dinner with Trump,” announced the official meme coin account on X, offering a spot for the best $TRUMP meme.
The top four meme coin holders were promised Trump-themed watches worth $100,000.
Currently, Trump is hosting a fundraising event titled “Crypto & AI Innovators Dinner,” supported by his MAGA Inc. political fund, at his golf club outside Washington.
Online invitations indicate a participation fee of $1.5 million per attendee.
The fund must disclose donors in regular reports, but US law does not mandate disclosure for meme coin purchasers.
Critics, including several Democrats, argue that cryptocurrency’s pseudonymous nature might allow undue influence on the President through digital asset acquisition.
The $TRUMP website assures contest registrants that their legal names and contact information “will never be publicly displayed.”
