WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump dined with 220 investors who plowed a combined $148 million into his crypto venture, boosting the growing crypto industry and inviting a torrent of criticism about the ethical implications. Black-tie dinners with the wealthy are nothing new for Trump. But this event, which took place on the evening of May 22 at his golf club in Sterling, Virginia, stood out among the annals of presidential dining. The dinner with the president was a reward for making the leaderboard in a contest to be among the top purchasers of the $TRUMP meme coin, a type of cryptocurrency. The top 25 buyers spent more than $111 million and were granted a private VIP reception with Trump, while the top four also received a limited edition Trump Tourbillon watch that sells for $100,000. In total, investors spent about $148 million on the $TRUMP meme coin, according to crypto intelligence firm Inca Digital. Trump arrived shortly after 7 p.m. ET riding the presidential helicopter Marine One, which landed on the golf course. He stayed at the dinner for slightly more than an hour before heading back to the White House. The dinner was not open to reporters. About 100 protesters, including Democrats and ethics experts, staged a protest at the club's entrance as guests arrived. Some held signs that read "Stop Crypto Corruption," "America is not for sale," and "Release the guest list." The White House declined to release a list of the attendees, arguing Trump didn't host the dinner in his official capacity. Critics say the dinner provided a way for the wealthy to influence the president by funneling money to his business. An affiliate of The Trump Organization and the company Fight Fight Fight LLC own 80% of the meme coins, according to the cryptocurrency's website. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, who was among the protesters, called the dinner "a stunning public display of corruption: The White House and President Trump are selling access to the government for personal profit." A crypto-friendly president who repeatedly has faced ethical questions dove into both with the dinner. It came just a day after the Trump administration accepted a $400 million jet from Qatar in a deal that raised concerns about the foreign nation trying to curry influence with the president. "This is one of the most blatant and appalling instances of selling access to the presidency I've ever seen," said Donald Sherman, executive director and chief counsel of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Crypto analysis firm Chainalysis found that Trump and business entities connected to him made more than $1.3 million in trading fees in the days after the dinner was announced, Chainalysis spokesman Jorah Huntington told USA TODAY earlier this month. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement that Trump "is working to secure GOOD deals for the American people, not for himself." "President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public – which is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this office, despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his businesses from the fake news media," Kelly added. Asked about the dinner during a media briefing on May 22, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said it's a private event that Trump is attending on his "personal time" and that he's abiding by conflict of interest laws. "It is absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting from the presidency," Leavitt said. "This president was incredibly successful before giving it all up to serve our country publicly." Trump launched his meme coin on Jan. 17, three days before he retook the White House. Chinese billionaire attended dinner Though the White House refused to publicize the list of dinner guests, one of those who attended was Chinese-born crypto mogul Justin Sun, who announced his plans on social media. "As the top holder of $TRUMP, I’m excited to connect with everyone, talk crypto, and discuss the future of our industry," Sun, who is worth $8.5 billion, according to Forbes, said ahead of the dinner. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued Sun and his companies — Tron Foundation, BitTorrent Foundation, and Rainberry — in March 2023. The SEC asked for the case to be put on hold in February to explore a resolution. Sun has become perhaps the most prominent buyer of the World Liberty Financial crypto token that Trump partially owns, spending at least $75 million according to posts on X. Sun is a World Liberty adviser. Trump once criticized the crypto industry but has since become a huge booster and investor. He promoted cryptocurrencies on the campaign trail, telling a crowd in Nashville in July 2024 for the Bitcoin Conference that he wanted to make the United States "the crypto capital of the planet and bitcoin superpower of the world." He has promised favorable regulation of the industry, which supported his campaign. The president held a crypto summit in the White House with prominent figures in the industry and signed an executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile. The administration dismantled a Justice Department unit targeting crypto fraud. Trump's financial stake in the industry has raised ethical concerns, though. He launched a pair of cryptocurrency tokens and owns 60% of World Liberty Financial. Trump's big crypto revenues Two of the cryptocurrency investments owned by Trump-affiliated entities alone have made at least $300 million in trading fees on sales of his meme coin and other digital currency since January, according to ethics watchdogs, Democratic lawmakers, crypto analysts, and other experts. Greater potential profits lie in the Trump entities’ stake in the value of the meme coin and their other Trump-themed crypto investments, these analysts and other experts say. Recently, World Liberty Financial announced that one of its digital coins is being used by an Abu Dhabi investment firm for a $2 billion investment in cryptocurrency exchange Binance. Democratic lawmakers and crypto analysts said the deal was a conflict of interest that could earn World Liberty at least $27 million annually. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, who has been at the forefront in bringing attention to the issue, opened a preliminary investigation into Trump's crypto businesses this month. Trump's dinner is "in effect putting a 'For Sale' sign on the White House," Blumenthal said during a press call on May 22. "It’s auctioning off access." Contributing: Josh Meyer, USA TODAY; Reuters (This story has been updated to add new information.)