TRUMP Token Whale to Dine With Trump, Sparks USDT Wage Talk

• Hyperithm CEO earns a Trump dinner invite as one of the largest holders of the TRUMP meme coin.
• Foreign laborers across South Korea increasingly demand wages in Tether to avoid theft, delays, and FX risk.
• Crypto adoption is rising at both ends of the Korean economy, despite regulatory ambiguity and legal hurdles.

Oh Sang-rok, the CEO of Seoul-Tokyo digital asset firm Hyperithm, secured an exclusive seat at a May 22 private dinner with United States President Donald Trump. 

This invitation, extended to only 25 people worldwide, was reportedly for top holders of the Official Trump (TRUMP) meme coin, which launched in January. Blockchain records cited in reports suggest Oh Sang-rok holds over $3 million in the TRUMP meme coin, ranking him 13th among its largest holders.

Who is Oh Sang-rok?

Oh Sang-rok’s background includes time as a Morgan Stanley M&A professional, and he built Hyperithm with an institutional focus, aiming to serve institutional clients rather than follow general crypto hype. 

Hyperithm’s approach, which is grounded in legal-first jurisdictions like Japan and backed by investors such as Coinbase Ventures–reflects a vision of crypto not as a novelty, but as future-proof financial infrastructure.

Related: All Major South Korean Presidential Candidates Support Bitcoin ETFs

The Hyperithm CEO has also been a vocal proponent for South Korea to establish clear crypto regulation. “Crypto should be recognized as a core K-asset,” he told Korean media earlier this year. 

Separate Trend: South Korea’s Foreign Workers Embrace Stablecoin Payrolls

While Oh Sang-rok’s high-level engagement through a meme coin makes headlines, another compelling cryptocurrency adoption story is quietly unfolding in South Korea. There, foreign workers are increasingly asking to be paid in stablecoins like Tether (USDT), rather than in the Korean won. 

Reports from towns such as Eumseong and Yangju show employers are installing wallet apps and adjusting payrolls, not primarily out of tech enthusiasm, but in direct response to insistent worker requests. 

One factory owner, pressed by over 30 foreign employees, stated that their employees “can’t go to the bank easily” and as a result, he had to approve their requests.

Related: June 3 South Korean Election May Legalize Spot ETFs and Reshape Digital Asset Access

For these workers–many undocumented and unable to open bank accounts–cryptocurrency offers a solution to long-standing problems: wage theft, remittance delays, and exchange rate volatility. 

After one Nepalese worker lost over 10 million won to dormitory theft, entire communities turned to crypto as a safer, frictionless alternative.

It’s worth noting that, technically, these stablecoin payments for wages remain illegal under current South Korean labor law, which mandates that wages must be paid in legal tender. However, the draft indicates that with an estimated over 400,000 undocumented foreign workers in South Korea and an aging population creating labor supply strains, the state has reportedly been turning a blind eye to this growing practice.