On the evening of May 22, 2025, local time, 220 cryptocurrency investors gathered at a golf club by the Potomac River for a lavish dinner with Trump, where they enjoyed the "Magnificent Potomac River View." The entry ticket was the meme coin $TRUMP officially issued by Trump.

This dinner was nothing short of a gilded game in the crypto industry. CIC Digital LLC (a subsidiary of the Trump family's business group) and Fight Fight Fight LLC jointly announced on April 23 that they promoted this event as the "most prestigious invitation in the world," offering lucky attendees the opportunity to "personally hear President Trump discuss the future of cryptocurrency."

Prior to the start of this dinner, an official announcement was made prohibiting guests from live streaming or bringing recording devices. However, at present, this requirement seems to have not been strictly enforced, as many attending guests have already begun sharing photos taken at the dinner on X and WeChat moments. Based on the currently available on-site photos, BlockBeats has compiled and summarized details of this dinner and some interesting tidbits.

Feast Inside, Protest Outside

It is reported that in addition to Justin Sun, well-known entrepreneurs from the crypto industry such as Jihoz.ron, Co-founder of Ronin Network, and Jack Lu, Co-founder & CEO of Magic Eden, were in attendance and posted relevant updates on social media about their participation in the event. Trump himself maintained his classic entrance style, arriving at the Mar-a-Lago Club in a Marine One helicopter.

TRUMP Dinner Scene, image source: X

After a brief introduction by the host, Trump emerged from the curtain and gave a brief address to the guests. Interestingly, during the introduction of Trump's entrance, the host once again "paid tribute to the people," using phrases like "Crypto President" and "47th President of the United States," which are very "anti-establishment."

Photo of Trump's Entrance Scene, image source: X

$50,000 "Trump White Dinner"

The dinner's "$55,000 value" menu was also exposed on social media. According to on-site photos, the menu started with an heirloom tomato burrata cheese salad served to all $TRUMP whale holders, accompanied by a refreshing basil garlic sauce, Italian balsamic glaze, and tender green sprouts.

For the main course, there were three options: filet mignon with a rich red wine jus, served with mashed potatoes and asparagus; or pan-seared salmon with lemon cream sauce, accompanied by wild rice and asparagus; vegetarian guests could choose stuffed mushrooms, filled with nutrient-rich quinoa and spinach, served with roasted red pepper sauce. Finally, a silky rich chocolate mousse cake was served as the dessert.

On-site dinner menu photo, image source from the web

Similar dishes are commonly found in the U.S. as the "White People's Meal," and are sold at Trump Tower in New York and Trump International Hotel in Chicago. The editor roughly calculated the prices of tonight's dinner dishes based on the menus of these two restaurants.

Trump Tower and Hotel menu, image source from the Trump Tower official website

Using TRUMP GRILL in New York as an example, adding jumbo shrimp to the salad costs an extra $32, upgrading the New York prime strip steak with black truffle fries costs $53, and the Brooklyn Black Forest Cake with Lucado cherries, Tahitian vanilla, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce costs $15, totaling $100. Adding a generous 20% tip and approximately 9% sales tax, the total should not exceed $130.

Trump Tower restaurant and dishes, image source from the Trump Tower official website

However, based on the dinner participation requirements, the 220th holder of TRUMP, i.e., the last guest, holds 4,196.117 TRUMP tokens. Based on the closing price of TRUMP on May 12th, it is worth approximately $50,000. To enjoy a White Dinner from Trump, crypto enthusiasts are indeed quite ambitious.

$100,000 "Trump Grand Gold Watch"

Another highlight of the meeting was the "Trump Gold Watch" worn by Justin Sun. At this banquet, the top 25 ranked investors enjoyed a private VIP reception with Trump, and the top four investors received a limited edition "Trump Tourbillon" watch. As the top TRUMP holder, Justin Sun was one of the recipients of this gift.

Justin Sun wearing the Trump Tourbillon watch at the banquet, image source from X

According to official sources, each watch is valued at $100,000. Each Trump Tourbillon watch is numbered, valued at $100,000 each, and limited to 147 pieces worldwide. The watch is a testament to Trump's personal style, whether it's the watch's "hunger marketing" or the extravagant "tycoon gold" color scheme.

Three Trump Tourbillon watches, image source from Trump Tourbillon official website

Trump's love for gold can be seen as a symbol of his personal brand. He sees gold as a symbol of power, from Trump Tower in New York to Trump International Hotel, to Mar-a-Lago Estate in Florida, all decorated in dazzling gold. The Oval Office in the White House is adorned with his signature gold, from gold badges and statues to gold paperweights and coasters, all reflecting his taste and preference. In Trump's eyes, white represents surrender and weakness, while gold is the ultimate symbol of supremacy, as he considers "whoever has the gold makes the rules" as a negotiation principle.

White House interior; Trump's gold paperweight; Trump's account, image source from X

Mass Protests, Democratic Criticism

It is worth noting that this crypto banquet was not the only crypto event hosted by Trump this month. On May 5, Trump held a cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence innovators' banquet at Trump National Golf Club in Virginia, with an entry fee of $1.5 million per person and special guest David Sacks, making it one of the most expensive political fundraising events in recent years.

According to The New York Times, Trump's series of "Bronze Stream Pollution" behaviors have been criticized by various sectors of society, including the Democratic Party. On May 23, protesters gathered outside Trump's National Golf Club in Washington to protest the crypto banquet held for Trump, a top holder of a memecoin. At the entrance to the banquet, dozens of protesters chanted "Shame, Shame, Shame," holding signs with slogans like "Stop Crypto Corruption," "Release Guest List," and "No King."

Protesters outside the banquet, image source: X

Perhaps in an effort to minimize the impact, the agenda for 25 VIP guests to visit the White House has also been removed from the $TRUMP website.

Among the protesters was Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon, who shouted at the entrance of Trump's golf course, "This is the Crypto Corruption Club," calling the banquet the "Mount Everest of Corruption."

Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts stated that Trump's private dinner with his token holders could constitute "abuse of power" corruption and called for an ethics investigation. Senator Jon Ossoff publicly called for Trump's impeachment, saying, "When the sitting U.S. President essentially sells access to him directly paid, there is no doubt that this reaches the level of an impeachable offense."

Furthermore, the U.S. Constitution prohibits federal officials from accepting gifts from foreign governments, and since $TRUMP token holders remain anonymous, it is difficult to rule out foreign influence through token purchase for political access. Senator Warren, along with 9 other lawmakers, has written to the Ethics Office requesting an investigation into whether Trump has engaged in de facto bribery through token sales.

$TRUMP launched on the Solana blockchain on January 17, 2025, with an initial total supply of 1 billion tokens. 20 million tokens (20%) were sold through an ICO, with the remaining 80 million held by the two companies mentioned above, accounting for 80%. In the days following the start of trading, the value of the 20% TRUMP tokens issued soared to $14 billion. On paper, Trump's net worth increased by hundreds of billions of dollars almost overnight.

Since then, the coin's value has dropped by over 80% from its peak. However, after Trump announced the banquet on April 23, another trading frenzy ensued, causing a surge in the memecoin's price. As market intermediaries, Fight Fight Fight and CIC Digital may have made hundreds of thousands of dollars from transaction fees.

「Banquet Crypto-Entertainment」 and the Stark Contrast of Democratic Party Members

Currently, the most viral video from the banquet comes from Justin Sun. As the "Big Brother of Rankings," he thanked Donald Trump for everything he has done for the crypto industry on the stage, saying: "Just 100 days ago, they were everywhere hunting down cryptocurrency people, and we couldn't have such a grand event in Washington. All crypto people gathering in the U.S. to do crypto things is the best thing I can think of in my life."

Justin Sun delivering a speech at the banquet, image source from X

As a major supporter of Donald Trump, Justin Sun invested $75 million in Trump's family project World Liberty Financial (WLFI). Subsequently, his pending civil fraud case was halted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), citing the interests of both parties and "public interest."

SEC's move was questioned by members of Congress at a hearing on May 21. Democratic Representative Glenn Ivey of Maryland raised concerns to SEC Chairman Paul Atkins about the meme coin related to Trump and the relationship with crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, stating, "This whole thing smells fishy," and hoping that the SEC would investigate the matter.

As Trump's personal interests become increasingly intertwined with the crypto industry, skepticism within the Democratic Party about Trump's corruption and abuse of power through the crypto industry is growing, impacting the progress of crypto legislation.

On May 22, the Stablecoin "GENIUS Act" passed the debate motion with 69 votes in favor and 31 votes against, entering the amendment process. This act could become the first federal-level stablecoin regulatory framework in the United States, widely seen as potentially reshaping the entire stablecoin market landscape.

However, the next day, the Democratic Party expressed opposition to this act. On May 23, according to Axios, senior Senate Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer, Senators Elizabeth Warren, and Jeff Merkley would submit an amendment to the "GENIUS Act" to prevent the U.S. President from profiting from stablecoins.

Prior to this, the Democratic Party had vehemently obstructed the act. On May 9, the U.S. Senate rejected the act, with Democrats demanding language explicitly prohibiting administration officials, including Trump and his family members, from holding or trading cryptocurrency, and strengthening anti-corruption provisions.

The Democratic Party's questioning of Trump's conflicts of interest first arose from a report by The Wall Street Journal.

On March 13, 2025, The Wall Street Journal broke the news that the Trump family was in talks to acquire a significant stake in Binance.US, despite strong denials by CZ. The report was corroborated by Bloomberg, which hinted at a forthcoming stablecoin collaboration between the two parties. This stablecoin turned out to be USD1, recently launched by Binance. That month, the Abu Dhabi-based investment company MGX announced a $2 billion investment in Binance, but at that time, the specific investment channel into Binance was not clear.

At the end of April, WLFI and CZ's official social media accounts posted photos of WLFI's three co-founders meeting CZ in Abu Dhabi. On May 1, Eric Trump, son of Trump, announced that the World Liberty Financial-issued US Dollar stablecoin (USD1) had been officially selected as the official stablecoin to complete MGX's $2 billion investment in Binance.

CZ meets with WLFI founders, image source from X

As the evening banquet lights along the Potomac River came on, the whales and the traffic president completed a two-way journey. The essence of this crypto carnival has long transcended mere hype within the crypto community. It is not only another explosion of the Sun marketing tactic but also a realization of the deep integration of political power and virtual assets, with its absurd contrast between the "indoor grand feast" and "outdoor protest demonstration" highlighting the increasingly polarized attitudes of the two American parties towards crypto.

Whether genuinely wanting to help the industry rise or more inclined to create a new ATM for their family, this "crypto president" is increasingly walking on the cutting edge. The grand crypto banquet may be just a show of ambition, and what kind of storm will be stirred up in the partisan struggle afterward remains unknown.

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