U.S. President Donald Trump held a closed-door event on Thursday evening for 220 crypto investors who bought his memecoin

Crypto enthusiasts, including former NBA star Lamar Odom, attended a dinner at the Trump National Golf Club in Northern Virginia, near Washington.

U.S. President Donald Trump held a closed-door event on Thursday evening for 220 crypto investors who bought his memecoin, despite bipartisan concerns from lawmakers that he is selling access to amass personal wealth, reports NBC News.

Crypto enthusiasts, including former NBA star Lamar Odom, attended a dinner at the Trump National Golf Club in Northern Virginia, close to Washington. Around 100 protesters lined the road to the entrance, attempting to shame those in attendance with shouts and signs like "Trump is a traitor," "Crypto corruption," and "America is not for sale."

Odom, a former Los Angeles Lakers player, walked past protesters with an umbrella, according to a post on his X account where he promoted his own memecoin. Others arrived in luxury SUVs with tinted windows, and many wore tuxedos to the event, which was called "black tie optional."

To secure a spot, the mostly anonymous participants needed to be among the 220 largest holders of the $TRUMP coin, with the average participant spending $1.8 million, according to blockchain analytics firm Nansen.

Two Trump-affiliated companies own 80% of the $TRUMP coin project. While their ability to sell is limited in the short term, the project's creators receive a commission on every transaction. According to research firm Chainalysis, these commissions have amounted to over $324 million since January. The exact amount that Trump will personally receive is unknown.

"Every time a transaction happens, he gets a transaction fee? It's just unconscionable what he's doing," said Ken Papay, a former U.S. Treasury official who was among the protesters outside the event.

"He's using the presidency to make himself and his family wealthier. It's just wrong for that to be happening in our country," added Papay, 73.

Trump arrived at the dinner by helicopter and departed the event the same way, without speaking to reporters - and, according to one of them, barely spoke to those in attendance. A 32-year-old man from Austin, Texas, who declined to provide his name, stated that Trump spoke for about 15 minutes.

The man mentioned that Trump did not announce any new cryptocurrency policy but rather spoke positively about a potential bitcoin reserve and positioned himself as a supporter of cryptocurrency.

According to the person, most people at the event did not have the opportunity to speak with Trump or take a picture with him, and he left immediately after finishing his speech.

"He flew in and flew out by helicopter. We didn't get to shake his hand or anything like that, but it was a really interesting group of crypto people all in one room," the person said.

The dinner was advertised on the website as "intimate" and "the most exclusive invitation in the world."

The menu for the night included "Trump's organic field green salad," filet mignon, roasted halibut, and lava cake. A photo posted by one attendee, known on the social media platform X as @cryptoo_bear, shows guests receiving commemorative hats and a card.

In another post by @cryptoo_bear, written in Japanese, the user expressed disappointment with Trump's participation.

"After a speech that lasted just under 30 minutes, President Trump danced his way out of the room," the user wrote. "The initial explanation was that we would walk around the tables and take souvenir photos at each other's table, but for some reason, that didn't happen. It's a bit disappointing."

Trump noted the event on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"The U.S. is massively dominating Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, etc., and we will continue to do so!" he wrote.

After returning to the White House on Thursday evening, Trump told reporters that the event was "good, very good."

The event has raised concerns among both parties in Congress.

Senator Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said this month that the exclusive dinner "makes me wonder," and Senator Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said the dinner concept was "abstract, hard to understand."

Senator Chris Murphy, D-Conn., slammed the project at a press conference earlier Thursday.

"This is the most corrupt White House in the history of the country," Murphy said, joined by other lawmakers. "Just because corruption is happening publicly, where everyone can see it, doesn't mean it's not rampant predatory corruption."

White House press secretary Anna Kelly said this week that Trump did not act to enrich himself.

"President Trump acts only in the interests of the American public - that is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this position, despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his business by the fake media," she said.