Trump Memecoin Luncheon Drives Whale Wallet Activity

The number of whale wallets holding more than one million of US President Donald Trump’s memecoin has surged to a five-month high after announcing a luncheon at his Florida home for top holders last week. 

There are now 83 wallets holding more than 1 million TRUMP (TRUMP) (equating to $3.7 million), making it the highest showing for the memecoin since Oct. 8 last year, Santiment said in an X post on Monday.

The luncheon with Trump is set for April 25 at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, according to the Trump team. The top 297 token holders are invited, with the top 29 eligible for a private reception with the president, subject to passing background checks. 

In the days following the luncheon announcement, TRUMP rose by more than 50% to hit a peak of $4.35. As of Wednesday, TRUMP is up 27% over the last seven days and trading at $3.71.

Dominick John, an analyst with Zeus Research, told Cointelegraph the Mar-a-Lago event, which offers access to the US president, is acting as a powerful catalyst for accumulation. 

Crypto data analytics platform CoinCarp lists 642,882 TRUMP holders, with over 91% of the supply concentrated among the top 10 and over 97% among the top 100. At the first event for TRUMP token holders last year, Tron founder Justin Sun was the largest tokenholder. 

John also points to other guests, such as Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, who is scheduled to speak and attend the luncheon, as potential drivers of user interest.

“Momentum is driven by narrative-led flows and whale positioning,” he said.

“The presence of Paolo Ardoino from Tether at this event hints at potential ecosystem announcements, providing a real catalyst. His appearance could transform the gala into a progress showcase for the TRUMP token,” John added.

TRUMP spiked in lead up to last year’s gala

Trump held his first “crypto gala” dinner last year in May 2025, a few months after his Jan. 20 inauguration as US president. 

It was limited to the top 220 TRUMP token holders and included crypto executives such as Hyperithm CEO Sangrok Oh, as well as anonymous and pseudonymous crypto traders like Cryptoo Bear, and sports stars like NBA champion Lamar Odom.

The event’s announcement a month earlier, on April 23, saw the token peak at $15.59 on April 25. However, the token began to gradually fall from that point. It fell to $14.51 on May 22, the day of the dinner, then gradually dropped to $12.46 a week later and $8.90 a month later.

John said it’s likely the coin would follow a similar trajectory after the upcoming luncheon concludes in April.

“Historically, Trump events show an announcement-driven hype phase followed by a gradual post-event downtrend. This event will follow a similar trajectory, unless new developments are unveiled around this event.”

US lawmakers look to limit memecoin profits by politicians

US senators and former staffers protested outside the event last year, while Democratic lawmakers have also introduced bills to limit political influence and profits from memecoins.

Related: SEC will consider most crypto assets not securities under federal law

The Modern Emoluments and Malfeasance Enforcement (MEME) Act was introduced in February 2025 to prevent federal officials from using their positions to profit from memecoins. It’s currently in the Committee stage and hasn’t progressed to a vote in either the House or Senate.

Meanwhile, the Stop Presidential Profiteering from Digital Assets Act aims to make it illegal for federal officials to issue, promote, or sell digital assets, such as memecoins. The similar Curbing Officials’ Income and Nondisclosure (COIN) Act has also failed to advance since its introduction last year. 

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