From New Delhi to Dubai, world leaders tread a delicate line between diplomacy and self-interest

This Thursday night, Donald J. Trump will host an exclusive gala dinner at his Trump National Golf Club. But it's not for heads of state.

Donald J. Trump is a busy man. When he’s not golfing at his National Doral resort, hosting rallies in battleground states, or engaging in his favourite pastime of poking fun at ‘Sleepy Joe’ on Truth Social, the former president enjoys another unique activity: engaging directly with his top investors.

This Thursday night at his Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, Trump will host an exclusive gala dinner. But it’s not for heads of state. It’s not for veterans or policy architects. It’s for the top 220 investors in his meme cryptocurrency, the $TRUMP coin.

The ticket? Hundreds of thousands in crypto. The reward? Private access to the Oval Office. For the top 25 holders? A personal VIP tour of the White House.

Now, for those of us observing from India—a rising power with both economic and strategic stakes in a fragile global order—this isn’t just American political theatre. It’s a potential threat to international diplomacy, regional security, and the very fabric of democratic accountability.

This isn’t innovation. It isn’t a quirky PR stunt. This is a sitting President of the United States monetising political access via a digital token. And worse—most of those buying in are not American citizens.

Bloomberg confirms that 19 of the top 25 $TRUMP coin holders are foreign nationals. This isn’t political patronage—it’s outsourced influence. These are people who owe nothing to the U.S. Constitution, but now hold financial stakes in American policy.

India has long relied on a stable and principled United States to uphold norms—especially in South Asia. But if foreign billionaires can purchase backdoor access to American policy, what does it mean for India’s interests? For our defense partnerships? For our sovereignty?

The implications extend beyond Washington’s corridors. Just weeks after Trump’s crypto-backed political machine took full shape, he announced a surprise diplomatic initiative: to mediate between India and Pakistan.

But it’s no coincidence that this move coincides with a lucrative new partnership between Trump’s crypto empire and Pakistan.

The Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC), an entity with ties to the country’s intelligence agencies, has closed a deal with World Liberty Financial—a company where Trump and his family reportedly hold a 60% stake. WLF is the same vehicle accruing millions from $TRUMP coin investors and channeling it into crypto exchanges like Binance, backed by UAE and Chinese capital.

And suddenly, Trump is interested in “peace” in South Asia? This isn’t peacemaking. This is policymaking for profit.

Consider this: A Chinese-born crypto fugitive, Justin Sun, is one of the largest holders of $TRUMP coin. Earlier this year, he was charged with securities fraud by the U.S.—but those charges conveniently disappeared after Trump assumed office again.

Sun has since invested $75 million into Trump’s DeFi platform, and a Chinese-linked firm purchased $300 million worth of $TRUMP tokens as Trump mulled over a TikTok ban. A UAE-backed crypto fund also committed $2 billion through World Liberty Financial into Binance—triggering a U.S. state visit and a sale of 500,000 Nvidia AI chips by Trump, a move with huge military-tech implications.

This is no longer about American politics. It’s about the geopolitical auctioning of influence—with crypto as currency and the U.S. presidency as collateral.

Let’s be clear-eyed about what’s at stake:

$148 million raised just from gala attendees

$100 million in transaction fees from $TRUMP token activity

80% of $TRUMP coin is controlled by Trump’s organisation

Trump’s crypto net worth: $2.9 billion

37% of his overall wealth is now tied to cryptocurrency

This isn’t a politician. This is a global crypto oligarch playing both sides of every border.

India has a carefully cultivated relationship with the U.S.—from strategic defense pacts to QUAD alliances, tech diplomacy, and counter-terror partnerships.

But with a compromised White House beholden to the highest crypto bidder, what confidence can New Delhi truly have in any deal brokered by Trump? Can we trust an administration where Pakistan-backed crypto lobbies may influence foreign policy? Can we engage with a President whose loyalty may lie not with the democratic world, but with whoever buys the next 10 million $TRUMP tokens?

India does not need to be reliant on Washington’s whim. But we must be attentive when American foreign policy becomes an NFT marketplace masquerading as diplomacy.

The founding fathers of the U.S. had a deep fear of foreign entanglements. But even they could not have envisioned a presidency sold on cryptocurrency, propped up by rogue actors, and incentivised by meme