'Burned along the way': Trump cost meme coin dinner guests millions in losses

President Donald Trump is hosting a dinner at his private gold club near Washington, D.C., Thursday night for the top holders of his $TRUMP meme coin, but a report in The Guardian says nearly half of his "winners" have lost millions on the cryptocurrency.

According to last month's announcement, the top 220 holders in a $TRUMP meme coin competition would win a ticket to a gala at the Trump National golf club. The top 25 holders would also get the chance to meet the president at a “Private VIP Reception” before the dinner, and the very top four would win a limited edition Trump Tourbillon watch that sells for $100,000.

The Guardian reported that the announcement "caused the coin to spike more than 50%."

But after analyzing crypto wallets on the Solana blockchain, The Guardian found that many investors "have been burned along the way."

"Of the 220 winners, 95 – some 43% – have suffered a net loss from purchasing $Trump since the coin’s January launch, a combined $8.95m, according to trading history and portfolios as of 21 May," the report noted.

"A contestant under the username 'GAnt' appears to have endured the biggest losses" at $1.06 million. "Similarly, user 'Meow' is down $621,000, despite achieving VIP status," according to the analysis.

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The "competition" and disclosure of the "identities of possible attendees" has led to accusations of "pay-to-play policymaking," according to The Guardian.

"Topping the leaderboard is Justin Sun, a Chinese-born crypto billionaire who founded the Tron blockchain. Sun was charged in 2023 with market manipulation and offering unregistered securities, but the SEC dropped the case in February," the report said.

The one person who has not lost money on $TRUMP is the president himself.

"A company controlled by the Trump family and a second firm together hold 80% of the remaining supply of $TRUMP coins, and have so far earned $320.19 million in fees, including at least $1.35 million after the dinner announcement, according to blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis," Reuters reported.

Far from a "conflict of interest," the White House says voters expect Trump to make money.

"I would argue, one of the many reasons that the American people re-elected this president back to this office is because he was a very successful businessman before giving it up to publicly serve our country," press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday.

Read The Guardian article here.