The top 220 buyers of the cryptocurrency sponsored by Donald Trump won on Monday the chance to attend an exclusive dinner with the president, as a reward for pumping money into the coin.
This was the culmination of Trump's promotional efforts, which spanned weeks for the contest, which raised accusations of him exploiting his position to enrich his family's business and exposing himself to foreign influence.
The cryptocurrency, called $TRUMP, was launched in mid-January and has a market value of over two billion dollars, after months of investor enthusiasm for purchasing it due to extensive promotion. A company linked to the Trump family and another partner company hold the majority of the coins, according to Reuters.
According to a statement on Trump's website, released Monday afternoon:
"Congratulations, if you are among the top 220 people on the leaderboard, we will contact you within the next 24 hours. Check your inbox (and spam folder) and expect a phone call inviting you to the official Trump dinner and its details."
He added: "You will meet President Trump on May 22 during the dinner in Washington, D.C." This was the text of the message sent to the winners of the chance to attend the exclusive dinner.
Trump's cryptocurrency project has faced criticism from Democrats and ethics watchdogs, as well as from the Securities and Exchange Commission, due to the potential for conflicts of interest and allegations of corruption. The competition to dine with the president has heightened these concerns, creating what resembles a struggle for direct access to the president.
The dinner will be held at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia, and will also include a very exclusive VIP reception with the president, dedicated to the top 25 coin holders. The rules listed on the coin's website state that coin buyers can send someone else in their place, and if they are unable to attend, they can name a family member or friend to attend on their behalf.
Although the list of coin buyers is publicly available, it does not explicitly list the names of the winners, but only shows the usernames and cryptocurrency wallet numbers of the buyers, raising speculation about the competitors for a seat at the dinner, and what political or financial interests they may have.
A Bloomberg analysis of cryptocurrency wallets showed that many of the top holders of the Trump coin used foreign trading platforms that prohibit American users from purchasing these coins. Democrats and government ethics groups have claimed that this meme coin could allow foreign entities to buy influence with the president, prompting Richard Blumenthal, a senator from Connecticut, to launch an ethical investigation into Trump's cryptocurrency-related activities.
Blumenthal wrote in a letter last week to Bill Zanker, whose name appeared in the founding documents of Fight Fight Fight LLC, the sponsor of the coin:
"$TRUMP allows, and even invites, anyone in the world, including foreign governments and unscrupulous individuals, to enrich the president directly, while concealing potential gains in the borrowed identity of the blockchain."
For its part, the White House claimed that the auction, which Trump personally promoted via his platform "Truth Social," would not affect the president's political choices. White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt told reporters last week that Trump "adheres to all conflict of interest laws" through his cryptocurrency-related ventures.
The price of the Trump coin has experienced sharp fluctuations since its launch on January 17. It initially rose to about $75 per coin, before sharply declining in the following weeks, stabilizing at around $12 by the end of the auction. Approximately 750,000 buyers lost their money in trading the coin, while major buyers spent millions of dollars to reach the top of the leaderboard.
The official website of the coin described this event as "a highly important, highly secretive event, with the presence of President Trump," adding: "If you have secured a seat at the table, it is due to your merit."