By Douglas Gillison, Suzanne McGee and Michelle Price
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Cryptocurrency leaders sipped cocktails and danced to rap superstar Snoop Dogg on Friday night as they celebrated the impending inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, whose administration has promised major changes in crypto policy.
After years of butting heads with Washington policymakers, executives from crypto companies including Crypto.com, Kraken and Exodus partied at the first-ever crypto inaugural ball, held at the 90-year-old Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium under a towering 62 feet ( 62 feet). 19 meter) columns.
Dressed in black tie and ball gowns, guests feasted on miniature lobster rolls and Trump’s favorite McDonald’s (NYSE: ) burgers and fries, according to social media and two attendees who spoke to Reuters. In addition to Snoop Dogg, the entertainment lineup featured rappers Rick Ross and Soulja Boy, attendees said.
One of many Washington celebrations ahead of Trump’s inauguration on Monday, the crypto gala marks a stunning turnaround for an industry that has been in the crosshairs of the Biden administration. Two years ago, it appeared to be on the brink of extinction amid the collapse of FTX.
Trump, who did not attend the gala, courted crypto campaign cash with promises to become a “crypto president” and is expected next week to issue orders aimed at reducing cryptoregulatory roadblocks and promoting widespread use of digital assets.
“There were a lot of dark years,” said Les Borsai, co-founder of crypto investment adviser Wave Digital Assets, who flew in from Los Angeles. “If this means what the future looks like … I think this is the optimism we’ve been waiting for.”
Swag included “Make Great Again” red baseball caps and American flag pins emblazoned with the symbol of Gemini, an event sponsor and crypto exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who backed Trump’s campaign.
SOLD OUT
Tickets sold out at $2,500 each for general admission, the ball’s website said, but for a cool $100,000, VIP packages gave facetime with tech entrepreneur David Sacks, Trump’s incoming crypto czar and the gala’s emcee, according to attendees and crypto media.
About 1,500 people attended.
Several other officials from Trump’s incoming administration were also in attendance, attendees said. Other sponsors included the digital asset division of Robinhood (NASDAQ: ), MicroStrategy and Crypto.com, according to the event’s website. Sponsors had cocktails named in their honor.
“Last night was really a testament to how mainstream crypto has become,” said JP Richardson, CEO of Exodus, who co-hosted the ball.
As the industry rejoiced, Trump on Friday night expanded his cryptocurrency interests, which already include World Liberty Financial, by launching a digital token branded with an image from his July assassination attempt.
The price of this “meme coin” was around $27 on Saturday afternoon, giving it a market cap of around $5.5 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Worried about fraud and money laundering, President Joe Biden’s regulators cracked down on crypto companies, suing exchanges Coinbase (NASDAQ: ), Binance, Kraken and dozens more in federal court. Trump’s crypto policy team is taking shape, and his crypto-friendly Securities and Exchange Commission head pick Paul Atkins is expected to bring big changes to crypto policy.
“The crypto voter showed up in the election, and this event marks a turning point for crypto politics in the United States,” Jonathan Jachym, global head of policy at Kraken, said in a statement.
Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, hit new records above $107,000 in December on excitement over Trump’s policy changes.
“We are proud to support Crypto Ball (NYSE: ) … and look forward to supporting the new administration to drive innovation in digital assets,” a Crypto.com spokesperson said, adding the company’s North America president, Matt David , attended.
Representatives of the Trump administration, Robinhood, MicroStrategy, Gemini and the event’s two other hosts, BTC Inc. and Stand With Crypto, did not immediately comment. Sacks did not immediately return an emailed request for comment. Representatives for Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross and Soulja Boy could not immediately be reached Saturday.
