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Following weeks of conjecture among cryptocurrency aficionados and media outlets, Tron creator Justin Sun has asserted that he possesses the wallet responsible for acquiring the most substantial quantity of Donald Trump’s memecoin, enabling him to gain an invitation for a dinner and reception with the US president.
In a May 19 X post, Sun stated that he had obtained an invitation to join Trump’s dinner at his golf course near Washington, DC, as part of a reward for the leading 220 memecoin holders. The Tron creator alleged that he commanded the top wallet on the TRUMP token leaderboard under the username “Sun,” which contained approximately $19 million worth of the memecoin at a rate of $13.20.
As per Sun, he intends to connect with others at the May 22 memecoin dinner, “discuss crypto,” and “explore the future” of the sector. It remains unclear why the Tron creator opted to disclose his intended attendance at the event at this moment, particularly since the leaderboard was finalized on May 12.
Cointelegraph reached out to a spokesperson for Sun for remarks, but had not received a reply by the time of publication.
Although it was not a shock to many who speculated that Sun was the figure behind the memecoin acquisitions, his presence at the dinner further cements his affiliations with the Trump administration and the president’s family. Alongside the dinner for the 220 token holders, Trump mentioned that he would host a reception and “VIP tour” for the top 25 wallets on the leaderboard.
Related: What to expect at Trump’s memecoin dinner
Sun invested $75 million in tokens via World Liberty Financial, the crypto platform supported by Trump’s three sons, including a $30 million investment shortly after the 2024 election. The Tron creator also serves as an adviser to the company.
Prior to Trump securing the November election, Sun had been facing litigation from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed in 2023 regarding the purported “orchestration of the unregistered offer and sale, manipulative trading, and unlawful promotion of crypto asset securities.” In February, approximately a month after Trump assumed office and designated Commissioner Mark Uyeda as acting chair of the SEC, the regulator and Sun collectively filed a motion for a federal judge to halt the case, which was approved.
Memecoin’s potential conflicts of interest are influencing Congress
Sun’s and others’ engagement in Trump’s cryptocurrency endeavors has triggered demands for investigations and oversight from numerous Democratic lawmakers, who contended that certain individuals could exploit digital assets to essentially acquire influence with the president. The apprehensions initially slowed the progression on a bill to regulate stablecoins in the Senate, the GENIUS Act, complicated by World Liberty Financial’s own stablecoin, USD1. The chamber voted to proceed with the bill on May 19, mere hours before Sun’s announcement.
“How convenient: the day after the Senate advances the GENIUS Act, Justin Sun — a significant investor in the Trump family crypto venture — reveals he’s getting a private dinner as the president’s foremost crypto buyer,” remarked Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, as reported by Bloomberg. “It’s essential that everyone recognizes the GENIUS Act doesn’t prevent this kind of corruption — it legitimizes it.”
During a May 20 oversight hearing, Maryland Representative Glenn Ivey queried SEC Chair Paul Atkins regarding Sun’s case being stayed, as well as his investments in World Liberty Financial and Trump’s memecoin. Although the case was stayed prior to Atkins’ swearing-in as chair, Ivey expressed concern about the timeline between Sun’s investments and the SEC’s lack of pursuing its own enforcement action.
The memecoin dinner applicants are presumably still undergoing background checks before meeting Trump in person. As of May 20, those intending to attend included Kronos Research chief investment officer Vincent Liu, Hyperithm co-CEO Oh Sangrok, Synthetix founder Kain Warwick, a consultant named Vincent Deriu, crypto enthusiast Morten Christensen, a World Liberty Financial adviser going by the pseudonym “Ogle,” and a representative from the startup MemeCore.
Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading inquiries
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