Trump’s meme coin has lost 95% of its value. Buyers still want a seat at his table.

Over half of the leading holders noted as completing for seats at President Trump’s next meme coin supper have actually utilized cryptocurrency exchanges that restrict U.S. consumers, showing that much of the purchasers are based overseas, according to a CBS News analysis.

The gala, set for Nov. 22 at the Trump National Golf Club outside Washington, D.C., will seat the 185 biggest holders of the $TRUMP meme coin, according to the site for Fight LLC, the business behind the coin. A public leaderboard for the occasion just notes the leading 100 holders.

Mr. Trump is billed as the included speaker along with 3 yet-to-be-named “legends.” The leading 29 holders will get in advance seating and a VIP reception with the president, the site states.

The upcoming supper is the current example of the extraordinary intermingling of company and politics throughout Mr. Trump’s 2nd term.

Mr. Trump made a minimum of $635 million in royalties in 2015 from a licensing offer connected to the $TRUMP token, according to his monetary disclosureMr. Trump stands to make more cash from the coin, given that an affiliate of the Trump Organization makes income whenever the coin is traded, according to the meme coin’s site

“Foreign actors used to need a back door to try to influence a president,” stated Zach Everson, a scientist for the progressive customer rights advocacy group Public Citizen. “Trump is holding the front door open and inviting them in for a steak dinner.”

Out of the 100 leading holders noted as contending for seats, a minimum of 52 moved funds through crypto exchanges that disallow U.S. consumers, consisting of Binance, Bybit and MEXC, according to the CBS News analysis.

Due to the fact that exchanges like Binance bar U.S. clients, experts generally deal with accounts that utilize them as most likely coming from individuals outside the U.S., stated Matt Fiebach, co-founder of the crypto information company Entropy Advisors.

“All you can know with certainty is that a non-U.S. person or entity sent funds,” Fiebach stated.

A cryptocurrency exchange is a business, similar to a stock brokerage, where consumers trade dollars or other currencies for crypto. CIC Digital LLC, a Trump Organization affiliate, and another business, Fight Fight, together own 80% of the overall $TRUMP supply, according to the job’s site. The moms and dad business of Fight Fight, Celebration Cards LLC, utilizes Mr. Trump’s name and similarity under a licensing contract, the site includes.

A minimum of 44 of the users on the leaderboard negotiated through Binance prior to buying $TRUMP, the analysis discovered.

CBS News analyzed the deal histories of the crypto wallets noted on the gala leaderboard utilizing information from the blockchain intelligence company Arkham. While it’s not possible to see who owns particular wallets, it is possible to determine which exchanges are being utilized to acquire crypto tokens.

The users that negotiated on the exchanges that disallow U.S. consumers represent almost $6.8 countless the more than $15 million in worth assessed the coin leaderboard since Wednesday. A meme coin is a kind of possession that is normally utilized for celebratory functions or comical worth, and not a currency.

In 2023, Binance was required to unload its U.S. consumers after it pleaded guilty to federal charges that consisted of failure to avoid cash laundering on its platform and sanctions infractions.

Its co-founder, Changpeng Zhao, likewise pleaded guilty to stopping working to preserve a reliable anti-money-laundering program. (Mr. Trump approved a pardon to Zhao in October 2025, declaring the crypto billionaire was a victim of a political prosecution under President Biden).

Exchanges can likewise clarify who may be making transfer to offer their tokens. The biggest holder of $TRUMP moved about $70 million worth of the coin in September to an account where it might be offered, right before the gala supper contest was revealed, The Washington Sun reported

The coin’s overall market price has actually dropped more than 95% because its peak in January 2025, to about $532 million, information reveal.

Democrats and progressive guard dog groups have actually raised foreign impact concerns about the $TRUMP coin, cautioning that individuals overseas might be spending for access to the president.

While it might be possible for a U.S.-based user to prevent forex restrictions by masking their place utilizing a virtual personal network, or VPN, numerous exchanges state they take procedures planned to avoid this.

The Trump Organization did not react to ask for remark. A White House authorities stated in a declaration that the Trump administration just acts in the “best interest of the American people.” The authorities included that the meme coin occasion is “a private event, not a government function, and there is no promise of official government action in exchange for attending.”

This would not be the very first time the president has actually headlined a $TRUMP coin gala. Mr. Trump appeared at a comparable meme coin supper in May 2025 at his golf club in Virginia, and another this April at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

The meme coin has actually been a monetary benefit to Mr. Trump, who generated more than $1.4 billion in 2015 from crypto-related endeavors, according to his monetary disclosure.

The present leading area on the Trump gala leaderboard is inhabited by a wallet that holds about 1.5 million $TRUMP tokens, valued at almost $3 million. That wallet got its $TRUMP holdings in 2 transfers on Oct. 8– the biggest of which originated from another wallet that has actually utilized the Binance exchange. It’s uncertain whether the very same individual manages both.

“As was the case with Trump’s previous meme coin gala, it appears that the majority of $TRUMP investors are purchasing his meme coin through overseas exchanges,” stated Virginia Canter, who worked as a principles legal representative in Republican and Democratic governmental administrations. “Foreign actors are literally buying a seat at the president’s own table.”

Within days of its January 2025 launch, the Trump token reached a peak worth of $75.35. It has actually given that fallen drastically– to approximately $2 since Wednesday. The sharp decrease in worth has actually led Democrats to call it a supposed “pump-and-dump” plan.

Mr. Trump’s ties to crypto are anticipated to be a leading oversight location for Democrats need to they take a bulk in your house or Senate in the 2026 midterm elections.

The Trump household co-founded and holds a stake in World Liberty Financial, a different crypto business introduced in 2024. It produced numerous millions in profits for Mr. Trump in 2015, his monetary disclosure reveals

World Liberty Financial drew examination in 2025 after MGX, a financial investment company backed by the Abu Dhabi federal government, utilized World Liberty’s stablecoin to make a $2 billion financial investment in Binance. Both Binance and Mr. Trump rejected the pardon for Zhao, the Binance co-founder, was linked to the deal.

“I don’t know who he is,” Mr. Trump informed CBS News days after pardoning the crypto billionaire.