Summary: WLFI under Trump refuses to acknowledge allegations involving potential conflicts of interest for the president. The official Trump meme coin TRUMP invited 16 mysterious figures through events, profiting millions from transactions.
FX168 Financial News (Asia-Pacific) reports that U.S. President Trump's cryptocurrency empire is facing accusations, and his family-owned World Liberty Financial (WLFI) refuses to acknowledge potential conflicts of interest for the president. The official Trump meme coin TRUMP is hosting a banquet for major token holders, and British media disclosed that the first 16 'mysterious anonymous figures' profited millions through the event.
In a letter to Senator Richard Blumenthal, WLFI's lawyer claimed that the call for an investigation into the cryptocurrency platform was based on 'fundamentally flawed premises and inaccurate information.' The letter stated, 'The company refuses to make a false choice between innovation and regulation. What we oppose is the abuse of regulatory power and uncertainty to suppress legitimate innovation.'
(Source: Twitter)
Blumenthal is a senior member of the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and he is one of many Democrats calling for an investigation and legislative amendments concerning Trump's relationship with WLFI, Trump's TRUMP meme coin, and the planned banquet for top token holders on May 22.
The U.S. stablecoin (GENIUS Act) is a bill that recognizes stablecoins as payment tools and is currently under review in Congress; this bill may serve as a bellwether for how legislators handle potential conflicts of interest for the president.
Analysis from the UK (Financial Times) shows that traders who participated in purchasing a large amount of TRUMP meme coins to win tickets to a Trump banquet may have made millions in profit.
(Source: Financial Times)
The competition was announced on April 23, aimed at providing dinner to the person holding the most TRUMP meme coins in publicly visible cryptocurrency wallets within a specified time period. After the competition announcement, the token price rose from $9.26 to $15.33.
On May 12, as the ballot window closed, many traders began withdrawing tokens from their wallets, despite the competition website advising, 'Hang in there. Hang in there. Stick with TRUMP coins.' Their seats at the dinner at Trump National Golf Club in Virginia have already been confirmed.
British media confirmed that among the 25 winning VIP accounts, 16 received invitations to an unforgettable dinner with Trump, an 'exclusive reception with your favorite president,' and VIP travel rewards, but their public wallets no longer contain TRUMP coins. The event was originally scheduled for May 22.
Trump has made cryptocurrency an important part of his second presidential term, with his administration aiming to relax digital asset regulations and promote the industry's development. His family is also widely involved in the cryptocurrency field.
Trump's TRUMP meme coin has no other use besides being a speculative tool. The owners of these accounts are currently unclear, but everyone has given their wallets a nickname on the token website.
Among the 25 VIPs, 22 started accumulating TRUMP meme coins only after the competition was announced. Among them, 5 were sold in a one-time transaction, meaning they may have profited by participating in the competition.
British media estimates that these earnings could range from about $52,000 from an account named 'NACH' to $2.6 million potentially earned by the account named 'Woo.'
It cannot be proven whether all wallet transfers are sales or what the potential selling price of these wallets might be. However, British media estimated the market cost of assembling and selling these portfolios by assuming wallet transactions were conducted at market prices from the time of transfer.
An account named 'Woo' deposited 1 million TRUMP coins into a wallet a few days before the campaign ended, when these tokens were worth $10.8 million. Subsequently, this account sold these tokens when their value should have been $13.3 million, with a potential profit of $2.6 million.
In contrast, an account named 'GAnt' only recharged a wallet during the competition and disposed of all assets after the competition ended; this account may have spent about $1 million to win the competition.
Before the competition started, three of the top 25 accounts held TRUMP coins. One account 'ogle' may have profited $4 million from trading TRUMP coins, but this profit occurred before the banquet announcement.
Another account named 'SUN' accumulated about 1 million tokens before the competition. This included a purchase of 800,000 tokens at the time when the token price was $61.13 - significantly higher than the current $12.96. At the current price, the account holder may have lost $66 million.
However, as the largest holder of TRUMP coins during the competition, the owner of the SUN address will become one of the four participants entitled to a free watch.
In addition to the 25 VIP award winners, another 195 individuals won the right to participate in the 'Award Banquet.' British media analysis shows that 56 of the award winners have already emptied their submitted competition funds.