U.S. President Donald Trump gestures during a visit to Verst Logistics in Hebron, Kentucky, U.S., March 11, 2026. REUTERS Kevin Lamarque
Before President Donald Trump headed off to Washington, DC., on Saturday for the White House Correspondents Dinner he first had to face top investors in his Trump meme coin crypto scheme at Mar-a-Lago — just as his cryptocurrency is in freefall.
But MS NEWS reporter Alex Tabet said the value and pay-off of the money purchase isn’t as important as the act of dumping money into a hole that apparently buys access to the president.
“Let me break down how this Mar-a-Lago crypto conference works. So, the top 297 holders of this Trump Coin — which buying, by the way, enriches the Trump family — gets you invited to the conference. The top 29 buyers of the coin get a special VIP reception with President Trump, complete with champagne,” said Tabet. “And if I were one of those 29 people, I'd be hoping it's a bottomless brunch because the value of the Trump Coin has been absolutely decimated. The coin is down more than 84 percent in the last year, down 96 percent from its peak. So, I wouldn't be surprised if some of those attendees today were using those champagne flutes to catch their tears.”
But, of course, Duke University professor and crypto expert Lee Reiners said the bottom of the coin falling out from under it is no matter so long as heavy investment gets the owner a face-to-face with Trump and helps make Trump rich and appreciative.
“These are essentially political assets. It's a new type of asset class where the asset has no inherent value other than the ability to influence and curry favor with the U.S. presidential administration,” said Reiners. “From a revenue standpoint, we can say for certainty that thus far, in the second Trump Administration, Donald Trump has made over $1 billion from his crypto ventures. This is a level of enrichment by a sitting president that has no parallel in American history.”
Tabet added that a Reuters analysis found Trump’s family has taken in more than $1 billion in asset sales with at least $336 million of that billion coming from meme coin sales. “
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