The crypto firm that runs President Donald Trump’s meme coin is promising to hold “the most exclusive dinner in the world,” raising new ethics concerns about the president’s personal financial entanglements.
In a new page on its website, GetTrumpMemes.com, the crypto firm promises invitations to “an evening with 3 Legends and President Donald J. Trump” for the 185 largest holders of the “Trump Coin.” (The number of “legends” promised dropped from four to three on Wednesday.) The top 29 purchasers will be invited to an additional “VIP Reception with YOUR FAVORITE PRESIDENT,” while the four biggest will also receive an 18-karat Trump-branded gold watch.
The winners will be chosen based on a formula that seems designed in part to increase sales of $TRUMP in the next two months.
The competition, which began Wednesday, represents a new opportunity to personally enrich the president in what good-government experts have deemed an unprecedented conflict of interest.
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Trump faced substantial backlash from congressional Democrats over a similar dinner he held in May 2025 at the Trump National Golf Club for meme coin holders and another event held at Mar-a-Lago this April. The crypto company has also offered tickets to the Super Bowl and the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, although those did not include promises to convene with the president.
Trump’s “meme coin” has been the most lucrative of the multiple crypto products tied to the president. The president has earned $635 million from this venture since it started in 2025, as part of the $1.4 billion he has disclosed as having earned from business ventures through last year.
Purchasers of Trump’s crypto products have lost an estimated $4.7 billion combined thus far, according to an analysis by Public Citizen, a watchdog group.
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,” said Zach Everson, a research director at Public Citizen, who flagged the new “Gala Dinner.” “Americans deserve to know who is buying access to Trump, and what they want in return.”
It is unclear exactly how much the crypto holders will have to spend to get invited to the event, but the current largest account holds $104 million worth of $TRUMP. As of Wednesday, the 212nd biggest account holds $119,000 worth of $TRUMP. Accounts can contain the holdings of several people.
While it promises an evening with Trump and the “3 legends,” the invitation also states that “no attendees will be granted a private meet & greet with the president.”
Unlike World Liberty Financial, a separate Trump crypto firm owned by the president and his sons, the president does not own the company behind the meme coin. Trump sold the marketing rights to his name, which gave him some legal distance from the company’s activities. Bill Zanker, a longtime Trump associate, has been widely reported as leading the Trump meme coin.
Good-government groups have raised concerns about the potential for foreign and private entities to purchase the meme coin to curry favor with the president. The New York Times reported in May 2025 that attendees of the first gala included Chinese billionaire Justin Sun, Korean crypto executive Sangrok Oh and Vincent Liu, the chief investment officer at Taiwan-based Kronos Research.
Zanker could not be reached for comment. The White House referred comment to the Trump Organization, which did not immediately return a request for comment.
The value of $TRUMP has declined with staggering speed. Around the time of the president’s inauguration, the price of the Trump crypto coin spiked above $70. It collapsed almost immediately to below $10 and now sits at close to $2.
Nick Pinto, a 26-year-old crypto investor, said he invested $450,000 in the Trump meme coin and the value of his investments is down to roughly $50,000. He said he was disappointed by the first dinner last year, as Trump was there for “no more” than 20 minutes and did not take photos with the crypto holders. The steak was only 5 ounces and “not something you’d get at a steakhouse in New York,” he said.
Pinto also said that, if it was an option, he could see himself voting for Trump again. He plans on attending the upcoming dinner.
“I hope the food is better this time,” he said.
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