Trump Memecoin Heads into Second Gala with Lower Price, Same Access, New Scrutiny

When the token debuted ahead of Trump's second term inauguration, the memecoin token became one of crypto's busiest trades almost overnight, with daily turnover reaching millions of dollars as speculators rushed in. More than a year later, much of that momentum is gone, leaving organizers to stage a second gala at a time when prices, volumes and broader retail enthusiasm are far below their launch-era highs. 

TRUMP changed hands around $2.88 on 23 Apr, roughly 90% below its early peak. The decline has been even sharper in trading activity. Daily volume, $118mn over the previous 24 hours, is down about 99% from the launch-period peak, according to CoinGecko data reviewed by Sandmark. 

Race for access 

The event, scheduled for 25 Apr, is promoted on the token's official website as a Crypto & Business Conference at Mar-a-Lago and offers holders something memecoins rarely can: access tied to ownership. 

Rather than selling conventional tickets, organizers created a leaderboard based on holdings and time-weighted balances during the qualification window. The top 297 holders qualified to attend the conference and gala dinner, while the first 29 holders were promised VIP status, which includes premium seating and additional access to speakers. 

The list available on the event website features 18 "global superstars" as speakers, including Trump as keynote speaker, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino,  Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood, entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano, venture capital investor Tim Draper, crypto billionaire Justin Sun (who recently filed suit regarding another Trump-linked crypto project), former boxer Mike Tyson and real estate investor Grant Cardone, alongside other crypto investors and entrepreneurs. 

That has turned the run-up to the event into a contest between wallets, with participants incentivised to hold or accumulate tokens to protect positions.  

Onchain data cited by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain showed one wallet withdrew 105,754 TRUMP from an exchange on 18 Apr, increasing its holdings to about 1.13mn tokens. Days before, another large wallet moved 850,488 TRUMP off Bybit, in a sign that some investors were still building positions before the event. 

Regulatory backdrop 

The gala comes as Congress debates major crypto legislation over stablecoins rewards and ethics limits to government officials involvement with the digital assets industry. 

In an 8 Apr letter to the dinner organizer, Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Adam Schiff and Richard Blumenthal said the conference promises access to President Trump and appears designed to boost the TRUMP memecoin while generating fees for entities tied to Trump and his family. They said Congress must understand "the extent to which President Trump and his family are profiting off of his cryptocurrency ventures" and called for safeguards against "egregious conflicts of interest."  

The senators requested communications between organizers and Trump, members of his family, White House staff and affiliated companies, along with records on VIP leaderboard rules, transaction fees generated since the event was announced and confirmation of Trump's attendance. 

Given all three senators are in the minority party, it's extremely unlikely their letter will generate a response. However, should the Democrats regain control of one or both of the houses in the mid-term elections this November, the letter indicates that the gala may be a topic of interest in next year's Congress. 

The gala was scheduled for the same day as the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington, DC, where Trump was also expected, raising questions at the time over whether he could attend the Mar-a-Lago event as advertised. 

"Event organizers are promoting a conference by dangling access to President Trump to potential attendees (and in doing so, are encouraging purchases of his meme coin that will generate transaction fees for the President and his family) on a day he may not actually be able to attend," reads the letter.  

In 2025, Trump hosted a private dinner for leading TRUMP holders after a similar wallet-ranking contest that rewarded the largest buyers. Publicly identified attendees including Justin Sun, former NBA player Lamar Odom, executives tied to the MemeCore investor group and several pseudonymous traders.