Trump hosts gala for $TRUMP coin investors, raising alarm over crypto influence and presidential profiteering

US President Donald Trump hosted an extravagant gala Thursday night at his Virginia golf club for top investors in his personal cryptocurrency, $TRUMP coin—a memecoin that has quickly become a financial lifeline for the Trump family and its business partners.

US President Donald Trump hosted an extravagant gala Thursday evening at his Virginia golf club for top investors in his namesake cryptocurrency, $TRUMP coin. The event, described by critics as unprecedented in its brazenness, drew hundreds of guests, many from overseas, who gained access by purchasing large amounts of the memecoin.

Trump’s presidency has largely been defined by its close ties to the Trump family business. Though he promised to ‘drain the swamp’ of Washington D.C., Trump has instead invited guests to a cryptocurrency fundraiser cloaked in political access.

The gala at Trump National Golf Club offered access based on investment levels in the $TRUMP coin, with the top 220 holders attending dinner and the top 25 offered a private meeting with the president.

Launched just days before Trump’s second inauguration, the coin has already generated over $320 million in transaction fees, a portion of which flows to the Trump family via their corporate entity CIC Digital.

While framed by organizers as a celebration of cryptocurrency, the event served as a highly publicized opportunity for investors—some with direct business interests in US financial policy—to influence Trump’s future crypto agenda.

Guests included crypto titans like Justin Sun, a Chinese billionaire known for his failed attempt to buy the U.S. bank, and executives from Korea, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates. Several expressed hopes of shaping regulatory changes that could favour their firms' early entry into the American market.

Outside the club, protesters waved signs reading “Stop Crypto Corruption” and “USA Is Not For Sale,” accusing Trump of blurring the lines between governance and self-enrichment. Senator Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon, denounced the event as “the crypto corruption club,” and warned it marked a new level of influence-peddling around the presidency.

Inside, Trump touted his support for the crypto industry and promised to reverse Biden-era regulations that he claimed had “made your lives miserable.” In a video captured at the event, Trump said, “There’s a lot of common sense in crypto. We’re honored to be working on helping everybody here.”

The Trump administration denied that the event represented an ethical breach. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed concerns, saying: “It’s absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting off of the presidency.”

This gala is part of a broader trend in Trump’s second term. In recent months, his family has closed real estate deals with foreign governments, partnered with crypto entities to raise billions, and held sponsored events at Trump-owned properties.

Critics argue these deals show a disregard for long-held norms that presidents avoid direct profit while in office. Even Trump’s sons have begun to publicly reject the idea that they should place any limits on business dealings while serving in or around government.

“We’re going to play the game,” Donald Trump Jr. said during a recent appearance in Qatar.

Though the Trump Organization claims it is not involved in the memecoin dinner, it owns the venue and profits from every $TRUMP coin transaction. The event was organized by Fight, Fight, Fight—a company tied to Trump’s longtime partner Bill Zanker—and originally promised guests a White House tour, a reference later scrubbed from the website.

Legal and ethical experts warn that the mingling of foreign investment, crypto policy, and presidential access raises troubling questions under campaign finance laws and anti-corruption standards. Whether any formal investigation follows remains to be seen.