On May 22, US President Donald Trump is expected to host up to 220 people who had purchased the most significant quantities of his memecoin at a private event in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n
Though the exact number of attendees was unknown as of May 19, reports and blockchain data have revealed<\/a> some of the tokenholders who qualified to apply for the May 22 dinner and \u201cVIP tour\u201d and reception, presumed to be in the White House. Bloomberg reported on May 7<\/a> that more than half of the 220 wallets were likely controlled by foreign nationals.<\/p>\n Among the memecoin dinner applicants, who likely still face background checks ahead of getting a confirmed appearance before the president, included Synthetix founder Kain Warwick, a consultant named Vincent Deriu, and crypto user Morten Christensen, who reportedly only paid<\/a> $1,200 for the opportunity. <\/p>\n Others included a World Liberty Financial adviser going by the pseudonym \u201cOgle,\u201d and a representative from the Singapore-based startup MemeCore. Cointelegraph has also learned that Vincent Liu, chief investment officer of the Taiwan-based company Kronos Research, plans to attend.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s memecoin, even before the announced dinner and reception, was criticized by many members of Congress. <\/p>\n Some lawmakers said the president was opening the White House up to potential bribes and conflicts of interest by allowing people, perhaps tied to foreign governments, to put money directly into his pockets without transparency.<\/p>\n The controversy has spilled over into proposed legislation connected to digital assets, including a bill in the Senate aimed at establishing a regulatory framework for stablecoins and a draft market structure bill in the House of Representatives. Some Democrats said they would not support any legislation<\/a> until \u201cTrump\u2019s crypto corruption\u201d was addressed.<\/p>\n May 14 BlueSky post on Trump memecoin. Source: <\/em>Elizabeth Warren<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cDemocrats are thinking that this is just an official means by which to conduct corruption,\u201d said Rebecca Liao, co-founder and CEO of layer-1 blockchain Saga, in a statement shared with Cointelegraph. \u201cWhat began as a bipartisan bill with potential widespread support has now transformed into a proxy war between the Democrats and the Trump administration.\u201d<\/p>\n Related: <\/strong><\/em>Trump\u2019s crypto ties \u2018add a certain level of challenge\u2019 to passing bills \u2014 Coinbase exec<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Some organizations have planned protests during the memecoin dinner on May 22. The Democratic Party\u2019s arm in Arlington, Virginia, announced<\/a> its members would gather to oppose those in the White House \u201ccashing in on their public office.\u201d Cointelegraph reached out to the organization for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.<\/p>\n The top 220 tokenholders reportedly spent<\/a> a combined $148 million to have the opportunity to attend the event, which finalized its leaderboard<\/a> on May 12. However, anyone with a wallet can still buy TRUMP tokens and potentially influence the president\u2019s policies after the dinner is completed.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe decision to acquire the [TRUMP] token was not political,\u201d Vincent Liu of Kronos Research, who plans on attending the memecoin dinner, told Cointelegraph. \u201cIt was based on identifying early momentum, cultural relevance, and potential market catalysts.\u201d<\/p>\n In April, Freight Technologies said it would invest $20 million in the TRUMP token, suggesting that it could affect the president\u2019s trade policies between the US and Mexico, where the firm conducts some of its business. GD Culture Group announced in May that the memecoin would be included in its plans<\/a> for a $300-million crypto reserve.<\/p>\n \u201cThe issue is the conflict of interest between the Trump family\u2019s crypto investments and the administration\u2019s pivot toward crypto-friendly policies,\u201d said Liao. \u201cThe Trump family has very openly invested in crypto and has started their own crypto ventures. This has created a perception problem where policy shifts favoring cryptocurrency could be viewed as self-enrichment rather than in the national interest.\u201d<\/p>\n If the stablecoin bill, the GENIUS Act, is the first test for how Republicans and Democrats will respond to Trump\u2019s potential conflicts of interest in the crypto industry, there is already a stark contrast between the two parties. \u200b\u200b<\/p>\n House Speaker Mike Johnson largely brushed<\/a> off concerns about the president and his family\u2019s connections to the industry, saying he was \u201cnot an expert in that.\u201d White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly reportedly said<\/a> there were \u201cno conflicts of interest\u201d because Trump\u2019s children managed his assets through a trust.<\/p>\n Lawmakers are expected to take up a vote on the GENIUS Act in a matter of days, possibly before the memecoin dinner and reception are held. At the time of publication, it was unclear whether Republicans intended to address some of the Democrats\u2019 concerns around Trump and crypto, or move forward with a vote with no significant changes to the bill.<\/p>\nInterfering with stablecoin, market structure bills<\/h2>\n
Buying influence, or just speculating on an emerging market?<\/h2>\n