Trump Hosts Top Crypto Investors As Some Industry Leaders Fear He’s Putting Personal Profits First | EUROtoday

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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump rewarded prime buyers in one among his cryptocurrency initiatives with a swanky dinner on Thursday night time, an occasion that confirmed the ascendance of an rising monetary business — and likewise the president’s willingness to combine public workplace with private revenue.

Some 220 of the largest buyers within the $TRUMP meme coin have been invited to Trump’s luxurious golf membership in Northern Virginia, the place they dined on filet mignon and halibut. According to individuals’ posts on social media, Trump spoke for about half an hour earlier than dancing to the tune “YMCA.”

Despite the White House insisting that Trump can be attending the occasion “in his personal time,” he stood behind a lectern with the presidential seal as he touted an business that’s producing income for his household enterprise.

After feeling unfairly focused beneath President Joe Biden, the crypto business has rapidly turn into a strong political pressure, donating big sums to assist Trump and pleasant lawmakers. The U.S. Senate is advancing key pro-crypto laws whereas bitcoin costs soar.

However, even some pro-Trump crypto fanatics fear that the president’s private involvement could also be undermining their efforts to ascertain credibility and stability for the business.

“It’s distasteful and an unnecessary distraction,” mentioned Nic Carter, a Trump supporter and associate on the crypto funding agency Castle Island Ventures, who mentioned the president is “hugging us to death” along with his personal crypto companies. “We would much rather that he passes common sense legislation and leave it at that.”

As the president makes use of crypto as a platform to generate income for his model in unprecedented methods, it’s additionally creating a possibility for probably shadowy consumers to make use of the anonymity of the web to purchase entry to the president. The lack of transparency was evident on a poster board on the dinner, the place individuals signed a rating of prime buyers. Some used their actual names; others used pseudonyms.

No media was allowed into the dinner, and the president was at his golf membership for less than about an hour. Protesters gathered outdoors the membership holding indicators that mentioned “stop crypto corruption” and “no corrupt fools.”

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 22: Demonstrators hold up signs during the "America is Not for Sale" Rally Against Trump's Crypto Dealings at the Trump National Golf Club on May 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Public Citizen)
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 22: Demonstrators maintain up indicators through the “America is Not for Sale” Rally Against Trump’s Crypto Dealings on the Trump National Golf Club on May 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Public Citizen)

Jemal Countess by way of Getty Images

Trump mentioned the occasion was “good, very good” as he returned to the White House.

Concerns about Trump’s crypto ventures predate Inauguration Day

Three days earlier than Trump took workplace on Jan. 20, he introduced the creation of the $TRUMP meme coin on the fancy Crypto Ball held down the road from the White House. He described it as a means for his supporters to “have fun.”

Meme cash are the crypto sector’s black sheep. They are sometimes created as a joke, with no actual utility and susceptible to extraordinarily wild worth swings that have a tendency to counterpoint a small group of insiders on the expense of much less refined buyers.

The president’s meme coin is completely different, nonetheless, and has a transparent utility: entry to Trump. In addition to Thursday’s dinner, the highest 25 have been invited to a personal reception with the president, with the highest 4 getting $100,000 crypto-themed and Trump-branded watches.

Trump’s meme coin noticed an preliminary spike in worth, adopted by a steep drop. Its creators, which embody an entity managed by the Trump Organization, have made a whole bunch of tens of millions of {dollars} by accumulating charges on trades.

First woman Melania Trump has her personal meme coin, and Trump’s sons, Eric and Don Jr. — who’re operating the Trump Organization whereas their father is president — introduced they’re partnering with an current agency to create a crypto mining firm.

The Trump household additionally holds a couple of 60% stake in World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture that gives one more avenue the place buyers are shopping for in and enriching the president’s family. World Liberty has launched its personal stablecoin, USD1. The venture received a lift not too long ago when World Liberty introduced an funding fund within the United Arab Emirates can be utilizing $2 billion value of USD1 to buy a stake in Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency change.

Stablecoins have values pegged to fastened belongings just like the U.S. greenback. Issuers revenue by accumulating the curiosity on the Treasury bonds and different belongings used to again the stablecoins.

Crypto is now probably the most vital sources of the Trump household’s wealth.

“He’s becoming a salesman-in-chief,” mentioned James Thurber, an American University professor emeritus who has lengthy studied and taught about corruption all over the world. “It allows for huge conflicts of interest.”

How Trump modified his thoughts on crypto

“I’m a big crypto fan,” Trump instructed reporters aboard Air Force One throughout final week’s journey to the Middle East. “I’ve been that from the beginning, right from the campaign.”

That wasn’t at all times true. During his first time period, Trump posted in July 2019 that cryptocurrencies have been “not money” and had worth that was “highly volatile and based on thin air.”

“Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade,” he added then. Even after leaving workplace in 2021, Trump instructed Fox Business Network that bitcoin, the world’s hottest cryptocurrency, “seems like a scam.”

Trump started to shift throughout a crypto occasion at his Mar-a-Lago membership in Florida in May 2024, receiving assurances that business backers would spend lavishly to get him reelected. Another main milestone got here final June, when Trump attended a high-dollar fundraiser on the San Francisco residence of David Sacks.

Those near Trump, together with his sons and billionaire Elon Musk, helped additional push his embrace of the business. Sacks is now the Trump administration’s crypto czar, and lots of Cabinet members — together with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — have lengthy been enthusiastic crypto boosters.

“I don’t have faith in the dollar,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy mentioned in a 2023 interview. “I’m bullish on bitcoin.”

Trump + crypto: A political marriage of comfort

Many prime crypto backers have been naturally cautious of conventional politics, however gravitated towards Trump final 12 months. They bristled at how Biden’s Securities and Exchange Commission aggressively introduced civil fits in opposition to a number of main crypto corporations.

Since Trump took workplace, many such circumstances have been dropped or paused, together with one alleging that Justin Sun, a China-born crypto entrepreneur, and his firm engaged in market manipulation and paid celebrities for undisclosed promotions.

Sun, who as soon as paid $6.2 million for a bit of artwork involving a banana taped to a wall, after which ate the banana, helped the Trumps begin World Liberty Financial with an early $75 million funding.

Sun has disclosed on social media that he’s the largest holder of $TRUMP meme cash and is attending Thursday’s dinner.

“I’m excited to connect with everyone, talk crypto, and discuss the future of our industry,” Sun mentioned prematurely.

He posted a video of Trump getting into the personal reception.

“Did you get to see the helicopter?” Trump mentioned.

“Yeah! Super cool,” Sun responded.

Are Trump household income hurting different crypto buyers?

Trump has signed government orders selling the business, together with calls to create a authorities bitcoin reserve. In March, Trump convened the primary cryptocurrency summit on the White House.

But among the business’s largest names, typically brash and outspoken, have saved principally mum on Trump’s meme cash and different initiatives.

“It’s not my place to really comment on President Trump’s activity,” Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong mentioned at a latest public occasion.

Meanwhile, a prime legislative precedence for crypto-backers, a invoice clarifying how digital belongings are to be regulated, has superior within the Senate. But some Democrats have tried to stall different pro-crypto laws over the president’s private dealings — and see the dinner as a very egregious case.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, mentioned the gathering was “in effect, putting a ‘for sale’ sign on the White House.”

“It’s auctioning off access,” Blumenthal mentioned on a Thursday press name.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt mentioned the president is attending “in his personal time.” The White House has additionally mentioned it has nothing to do with Trump’s meme coin.

Associated Press author Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this story.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/us-trump-crypto-dinner_n_682fe177e4b0e1fe96d662fe