Skeptics like to deride cryptocurrencies as worthless made-up money, and that’s especially the case for memecoins. While many see Bitcoin as digital gold and Ethereum as a global computer, it’s hard to find any real-world utility with memecoins, which are at best speculative bets on internet culture. There may be an exception, though: the $TRUMP memecoin, which is one of the topics discussed on the latest edition of Fortune’s Crypto Playbook vodcast—available on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube, and in the video below.
On the vodcast, Fortune editor Jeff John Roberts and reporter Ben Weiss discuss the latter’s recent story about how the White House is convening a second gala for the top holders of $TRUMP memecoins. This time, the list of eligible holders will be expanded from 220 to 297, and the top 29 holders will be able to attend a special reception with their “FAVORITE PRESIDENT.”
The White House, though, reiterated an earlier statement saying that President Trump’s presence is not confirmed at the latest gala. This edition of the gala is a lunchtime event and will be held near Mar-a-Lago, unlike the previous one, which was a dinner in Washington, D.C.
As the Crypto Playbook hosts discuss, these events are questionable at best from an ethics and conflict-of-interest standpoint, but do represent an innovation for the memecoin economy. Unlike other such coins, such as PEPE or Dogecoin, $TRUMP coins have an actual benefit: a chance to get closer to power and perhaps even meet the president himself.
At the same time, this raises the question of how long the utility of the memecoin will last: Will it extend beyond President Donald Trump’s time in the White House? It remains to be seen.
This edition of the vodcast also explores a host of other hot topics in the world of crypto, including the latest controversy surrounding the Polymarket prediction market, and the questionable metrics put forth by the Bulllish crypto exchange. The hosts also look at Ripple’s new valuation and Mastercard’s big stablecoin purchase.