Who's joining Iron Mike at Trump’s crypto luncheon?

What do a legendary boxer, financial wizards, the US President, and the top 297 TRUMP memecoin holders have in common?

They’re all set to descend on the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on April 25 for Donald Trump’s cryptocurrency conference and gala luncheon, billed “a memory you will talk about forever!”

The celebrity roster includes heavyweight champion Mike "Iron Mike" Tyson and life coach Tony Robbins, with Trump’s attendance confirmed, at least according to the official website.

They will be flanked by the likes of Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood, venture investor Tim Draper, and Founders Fund partner Joey Krug.

On the crypto side, the roster includes Tether boss Paolo Ardoino, Anchorage Digital CEO Nathan McCauley, Upbit founder Chi-Hyung Song, and a16z’s Arianna Simpson.

“This gala is proof that the Trump family is always exploring new ways to reward loyalists of the asset,” Shawn Young, chief analyst at MEXC Research, told DL News. “This is a good thing.”

Despite the company’s hype machine, the TRUMP memecoin is still down 96% from its January 2025 peak after it jumped slightly after Trump announced the event. It now trades at $2.84.

“The TRUMP memecoin gala might be a good avenue to revive interest in the sector, but many won’t bank on a new wave from this speculative asset at this time,” Young said.

The event — the second by the US president’s memecoin team — comes as the first family’s crypto business ventures are under increasing scrutiny from lawmakers months before the midterm elections in November.

Take two

The first gala dinner for TRUMP holders attracted controversy.

In May 2025, the top 220 holders of the TRUMP token attended a similar gathering at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia.

Democratic lawmakers, led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, slammed the event as “pay-to-play corruption.”

Chris Murphy, a Democrat who has proposed banning officials from selling memecoins, described the gala as “a real problem.” He warned it could let wealthy and influential foreign individuals bypass normal diplomatic channels and try to lobby the president directly.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said at the time that there was nothing wrong with the dinner.

“It’s absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting off of the presidency,” she said. “This president was incredibly successful before giving it all up to serve our country publicly.”

This year, the scale and stakes are even bigger.

The invite list has expanded to the top 297 holders, with the top 29 promised a “VIP reception” with their “favourite president” and celebrity guests.

The 29 top holders will also receive some Trump-branded fragrance, a commemorative poster, a trading card, and a watch.

Fight Fight Fight LLC, the corporate entity behind the TRUMP memecoin’s official website, did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Democrats' criticism from DL News.

“‘There will be no private meetings with the president and no solicitations,” the TRUMP memecoin website says.

Fanbase turmoil

Last year’s gathering happened amid industry exuberance following Trump’s pro–crypto blitz that propelled Bitcoin to new all-time highs.

And billionaire crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, founder of the Tron blockchain and the top TRUMP memecoin holder with $40 million last year, was in the spotlight.

“I really appreciate, like, everything the Trump Administration has done to our industry,” Sun, clad in a tuxedo, can be seen telling the audience in a video shared on X.

But now, things are different. Even top tokens are reeling from a crypto industry downturn that has vapourised $2 trillion, or about half, of the total cryptocurrency market’s value.

And some of Trump’s biggest fanboys — notably Sun — have turned on World Liberty Financial, another Trump family crypto venture.

On Sunday, Sun posted a series of tweets accusing World Liberty Financial of secretly controlling user funds, freezing assets without warning, and using the crypto community like a “personal ATM.”

In response, World Liberty Financial accused Sun of “playing the victim” while making “baseless allegations to cover up his own misconduct.”

“See you in court pal,” World Liberty Financial wrote on X.

Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email him at lance@dlnews.com.