Trump recently attracted suspicion of profiteering due to the derived "$TRUMP" cryptocurrency. Although Trump himself firmly denied profiting from this digital asset associated with him in a recent interview, blockchain data and market performance tell a different story.
Trump Coin Hyped Up by Dinner Event
American citizens currently question whether the "$TRUMP" token's dinner event, promising top token holders the opportunity to have dinner with the former president, is merely a scheme to profit from the cryptocurrency.
Facing external doubts about whether he is "profiting from presidential influence", he strongly refuted in an NBC interview, "I haven't profited from anything." When the reporter further asked if he made money from Trump Coin, Trump responded: "I haven't even seen it. If I own stocks in a company and perform well, with the stock market rising, I would probably profit."
While Trump denies profiting, his hidden meaning suggests "there is profit, I just don't know about it" to avoid legal and moral issues.
Blockchain Data
According to blockchain data analysis company Chainalysis, within two days after announcing the "Trump Coin Dinner", $TRUMP token trading activity significantly surged, bringing nearly $900,000 in revenue to Trump-related wallet addresses, primarily from transaction fees. The timing makes it hard to dismiss the connection between this revenue and the "dinner effect".
Approximately 80% of $TRUMP token supply is controlled by Trump's group and related entities. This means that regardless of whether Trump personally "saw" specific transaction details, his organization and family-related enterprises have direct and significant interest in the token's revenue. Especially after the dinner announcement, $TRUMP price surged over 50%, with the Trump camp holding large token amounts being the primary beneficiaries.
Many election finance and government ethics experts point out that linking the opportunity to have dinner with the president to cryptocurrency holdings creates serious moral controversy, even if legally ambiguous. It is seen as a disguised "Pay-to-Play" method. They worry this could damage public trust in government integrity and democratic system, as investors might seek political proximity or potential influence through this channel.
While some of Trump's Republican allies tend to view this as "Trump's business operating style", some congressional members are dissatisfied. Notable critics, including California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, have publicly called on the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) to investigate the truth behind Trump using blockchain as a money-making pool.
