How a Trump fan snagged $2m betting on president’s second memecoin gala dinner

A trader is up more than $2 million after buying Donald Trump’s memecoin on the back of the US president announcing a second gala dinner for the top holders of the token.

The trader, who goes by “little x” according to blockchain data platform Arkham Intelligence, received $6.4 million worth of the memecoin from a Binance hot wallet on Thursday, hours after the announcement.

Since then, the token has rallied some 32%, boosting the value of the trader’s stash to some $8.6 million.

Little x, who is currently first in line to attend the second gala dinner, has yet to sell any of their tokens.

The timing of the gala dinner comes at a crucial time in US politics. Ahead of the pivotal midterm elections in November, Democrats are increasingly attacking Trump and his allies over the president’s many crypto dealings. Those attacks coincide with the crypto lobby investing over $271 million to sway the outcome of this year’s vote.

Second event

It’s the second time Trump has organised an exclusive gala dinner for those who purchase his memecoin.

Last year, the president hosted a similar dinner at the Trump National Golf Club near Washington for the top 220 holders of the token.

Democrats slammed the event as a “crypto corruption club,” and an example of the president using his position to profit.

Others noted the high number of foreign attendees, which included Chinese-born Tron founder Justin Sun and the anonymous co-founder of MemeCore, a crypto firm based in Singapore.

The issue, according to critics, is that the event effectively grants anyone with deep enough pockets access to Trump and his inner circle, and the connections and social cachet that brings.

What’s more, the entry requirement helps boost the value of Trump’s stash of his memecoin, which sits at just over $3 billion.

The White House has repeatedly refuted any allegations of wrongdoing.

“President Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children. There are no conflicts of interest,” Anna Kelly, the deputy press secretary, previously told DL News.

Trump hasn’t let the accusations stop him from hosting an even bigger dinner.

This time, the top 297 holders will be able to attend this year’s event at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

The top 29 holders will also qualify for a VIP reception with the president. The event’s website states there will be no private meetings with Trump, and no gifts will be accepted.

Trump profits

Although some traders have profited from the announcement of the second gala dinner, longer-term holders of the token have fared badly.

The memecoin is down over 94% from its all-time high, and has dropped 18% since the start of the year.

Yet at the same time, Trump has locked in vast profits from the venture.

Trump or Trump-controlled companies will eventually receive a whopping 80% of his memecoin’s total supply, according to the Trump memecoin website. At $3.93 a token and with one billion total tokens in existence, his memecoin trove is worth around $3.1 billion.

However, this stash couldn’t all be sold without crashing the token’s price, meaning its real value is substantially less.

So far, wallets tied to Trump’s memecoin have sent over $96 million worth of USDC and $8.5 million worth of TRUMP to Fireblocks, a crypto custody platform that also sells assets on its clients’ behalf.

Tim Craig is DL News’ Edinburgh-based DeFi Correspondent. Reach out with tips at tim@dlnews.com.