An excited murmur began to spread just before Snoop Dogg took the stage. Adorned in tuxedos and floor-length gowns, the elite of the crypto world passed along the news: President-elect Trump, the absent guest of honor for the celebration, had just taken to social media to Trump coin had crossed a market cap of $1 billion, a fitting climax to a first-of-its-kind inauguration party titled the Crypto Ball.
For the guests at Friday's black-tie affair, hosted at the neoclassical Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium just blocks from the White House, the party was a victory lap. After years of pariah status under a hostile Biden Administration, the industry waged a successful political campaign to elect crypto-friendly politicians, including President-elect Trump. Now, the industry is enjoying a once-unimaginable level of power and respect in Washington, D.C.
