The firm behind President Donald Trump’s meme coin is promoting a contest for investors to secure invitations to an exclusive dinner with the president.
The meme coin’s website on Thursday offered an “evening with 3 Legends and President Donald J. Trump” at his private club in Washington, D.C., for the top 185 holders of the $TRUMP coin. The top 29 purchasers of the cryptocurrency will be invited to a VIP reception “with YOUR FAVORITE PRESIDENT,” while the top four will receive an 18-karat Trump-branded gold watch.
According to CNN, the event is a sequel to a similar gala held in 2025 that some experts described as a “textbook pay-to-play scandal.”
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The contest began Wednesday and runs through Nov. 12, according to the website, which also notes that “no attendees will be granted a private meet & greet with the President” and that “no gifts will be accepted.” The event is scheduled for Nov. 22. The website, GetTrumpMemes.co, appeared to crash early Thursday afternoon.
Trump has faced criticism over his cryptocurrency ventures and allegations that he is profiting from his presidency. According to financial disclosures, he has earned substantial sums from his crypto ventures and made thousands of stock trades, including in companies affected by his administration’s policies.
The Washington Sun reported that Trump earned $635 million from the venture since it began in 2025, as part of the $1.4 billion he disclosed as earnings from business ventures through last year. Purchasers of Trump’s crypto products have lost an estimated $4.7 billion combined, according to an analysis by Public Citizen, a watchdog group.
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The White House has repeatedly said Trump is not involved in managing his investment accounts and that his portfolio “is independently managed by third-party financial institutions.”
Trump’s “crypto schemes keep trying to squeeze more money out of the presidency. Foreign buyers and special interests can compete for a seat at his dinner and the guests are vetted in secret,” Zach Everson, a research director at Public Citizen, said, according to the Washington Sun, which reported on the new “Gala Dinner.” “Americans deserve to know who is buying access to Trump, and what they want in return,” he said.
In May 2025, Trump hosted a similar dinner for the largest holders of his meme coin, “Official Trump,” at his golf club in Virginia. The crypto company has also offered tickets to the Super Bowl and the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.
Official Trump ($TRUMP) is a meme coin launched by Trump on the Solana blockchain shortly before his inauguration. Its value initially surged to about $70 before falling sharply. It currently trades at around $2.