Argentina’s President Faces Fraud Charges Over LIBRA Token Promotion

Highlights:

• Argentine President Milei faces fraud charges for endorsing the volatile LIBRA token.
• LIBRA’s value soared above $4 billion, then crashed 94% after Milei’s X post deletion.
• KIP Protocol blames Milei’s abrupt reversal of support for sparking the token collapse.

Argentine President Javier Milei is facing fraud charges after endorsing the Solana memecoin LIBRA. On Friday, Milei posted about LIBRA on X, saying it would support small businesses in Argentina. He claimed it was privately managed and stated he had no personal gain. After the post, the LIBRA token briefly surged past a $4 billion market cap. However, it later crashed by over 94% after he deleted it, sparking allegations of a pump-and-dump scheme. 

Milei claimed he was unaware of the project’s details and withdrew support after learning more. The following day, the President’s Office explained that the post was deleted to avoid speculation and further exposure. It also disclosed that Milei had met with KIP Protocol representatives in Argentina on October 19, where they briefed him on the blockchain project. The President’s Office confirmed that the Anti-Corruption Office would investigate and share its findings with the judiciary.

It all began with this post at 5:01 PM ET from Javier Milei.

As seen during President Trump's memecoin launch, the first hour was full of speculation:

Was this a hack or a real launch?

It turned out to be real as multiple other Argentinian politicians posted the news. pic.twitter.com/cL0ZQgxtCB

— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) February 15, 2025

Criminal Complaint Filed Against Milei

According to a Feb. 17 Associated Press report, Argentinian lawyers Marcos Zelaya and Jonatan Baldiviezo, economist Claudio Lozano, and engineer María Eva Koutsovitis filed a criminal complaint. They accused Milei of being complicit in fraud by promoting LIBRA.

Argentine lawyers filed fraud charges against President Milei in a criminal court on Sunday, accusing him of promoting LIBRA tokens on social media. The plaintiff believes that the incident constitutes a "rug pull" operation in the crypto space and points out that Milei's actions…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) February 17, 2025

Baldiviezo also charged Milei with breaching the Public Ethics Law, which mandates Argentine public officials to disclose their asset holdings and any conflicts of interest. “Within this illicit association, the crime of fraud was committed, in which the president’s actions were essential,” Baldiviezo said.

Investigation Underway

A judge will be assigned to the case, or it will be referred to a prosecutor for further investigation on February 17, according to the report. Meanwhile, Argentine lawyer Agustín Rombolá, founder and associate of the Rombola Mangione law firm, has filed a separate legal complaint regarding Milei’s promotion of Libra. 

On Feb. 16, Rombolá posted on X, stating he had reported Milei for alleged “fraud, conflicts of interest, price manipulation, and financial crimes.” Rombolá also mentioned that his firm is preparing a class-action lawsuit. The lawsuit will be for individuals who may have invested in the token and lost money.

KIP Protocol Blames Milei for LIBRA Token Collapse

Hayden Davis, the CEO of KIP Protocol, blamed Milei for the collapse of the LIBRA token. In a social media video, Davis said Milei and his team initially backed the project but later withdrew support, deleting all related posts. He claimed this sudden shift went against previous assurances and played a direct role in the token’s market crash.

Davis stated:

“Despite prior commitments, Milei and his team unexpectedly changed their position, withdrawing their support and deleting all previous posts on social media.”

This case shows the risks of political figures endorsing meme coins, like Trump’s token. Vitalik Buterin had warned such coins could harm crypto’s credibility. Since Trump, scammers have launched fake tokens, with LIBRA being the latest example.