What Is $LIBRA: Argentina President Javier Milei’s Crypto Endorsement, Rise, Fall, and Scandal Explained

Argentine President Javier Milei is facing significant political backlash following his endorsement of the cryptocurrency $LIBRA. The promotion, made via his X (formerly Twitter) account, led to massive financial losses for investors. After Milei's tweet, the $LIBRA token's value plummeted in less than one hour, and its developers reportedly made off with over $100 million in funds.

In this article, we will dive deep into the $LIBRA token’s rise and fall, Milei’s involvement, and the timeline of the scandal, from the token's launch to the eventual withdrawal of funds.

The $LIBRA Endorsement and Rapid Collapse

On February 14, 2025, President Milei promoted $LIBRA through his X account, describing it as an investment vehicle aimed at funding startups and bolstering Argentina's economy. The token's name resonated with "La Libertad Avanza," Argentina's ruling political party, leading investors to believe it had official backing. In his now-deleted post, Milei stated, "The world wants to invest in Argentina because Liberal Argentina is growing."

The endorsement led to a swift influx of investments, causing $LIBRA's market capitalization to surge to approximately $4.5 billion. However, within hours, early holders began liquidating their positions, triggering a sharp decline in the token's value. This rapid sell-off led to allegations of a "rug pull" scam, where developers promote a cryptocurrency to attract investments and then withdraw substantial funds, leaving investors with devalued assets.

Timeline of the $LIBRA Scandal

• February 14, 2025, 6:30 p.m.: Developers launched the $LIBRA token via Fix Float, a platform known for maintaining user anonymity.
• 6:55 p.m.: A liquidity pool for $LIBRA was created, enabling trading activities.
• 7:01 p.m.: President Milei posted about $LIBRA on his X account, including the token's contract address to facilitate investor access.
• 7:40 p.m.: Early investors began selling off their holdings, leading to a 70% drop in $LIBRA's price within an hour.
• 12:38 a.m., February 15, 2025: President Milei deleted his initial post and stated, "I was not informed of the fine details of the project, and after learning, I decided not to continue spreading it."

The Backing of President Javier Exploded $LIBRA’s Value

The president made a tweet on his X account by 7 p.m. about $LIBRA. He spoke about the project and included the token contract in the post to help investors locate $LIBRA quickly. 

It would have been very difficult to buy the token if Javier had not uploaded the contract address because it was not listed on any major exchange at this time. Within 45 minutes after the tweet went live, $LIBRA’s price skyrocketed. 

The first investor who bought $LIBRA for $0.21 per token immediately after Milei made the X post made a $6.5 million net profit after 37 minutes. In 45 minutes, the token reached an ATH of $5.54. 

The new price showed a massive increase of 2,500% from its launch price. In addition, the token’s total market cap moved from $1.5 billion to around $4.5 billion. However, more than 80% of the token was in three users’ custody. 

$LIBRA’s Great ‘Rug Pull Scam’ (Losses and Profits)

Most of the first users who bought the $LIBRA token started selling off 40 minutes after Milei made the post. The massive sell-off tanked the price by 70 percent in less than an hour. $LIBRA’s pricev dropped to $1.44 from $4.74. 

Crypto analysts mentioned that many of the massive selloffs were from members of the $LIBRA development team. Hayden Davis, the CEO of the company that launched $LIBRA and special advisor to the president, confirmed the analysts’ statements.

Stephen Findeisen, the owner of Coffezilla (a YouTube channel), interviewed Hayden. The CEO confirmed that he made profits of around $100 million from the project. 

Hayden also mentioned that he still has crypto tokens worth $11 million from the project sale and another $13 million from the transaction fees of $LIBRA trading. He made a profit of $113 million while still holding $11 million in crypto assets. 

However, while Davis and some other creators of the project made massive profits, more than 70% of those who invested in $LIBRA lost their money. 

Below is a percentage breakdown of the wallet holders who lost their money and how much they lost, according to Fernando Molina, a professional crypto analyst from Argentina.

Below is a percentage of users’ wallets that gained and how much they made, according to Fernando.

The wallet with the largest gain bought $LIBRA for $250,000 four times (totaling $1 million) immediately after the tweet. Within 45 minutes, that $1 million investment turned into $9.5 million. Conversely, the wallet with the largest loss, which began purchasing $LIBRA 10 minutes after the tweet, lost $5.2 million as the price plummeted.

Memecoin or Scam? The Debate Around $LIBRA

There’s been significant debate around whether $LIBRA is a memecoin, given its high volatility, social media-driven hype, and potential for early investors to make substantial profits. If it is a memecoin, it could be that President Milei was misled into promoting it. However, if $LIBRA isn’t a memecoin and is instead a scam, Milei could face legal consequences for promoting a fraudulent project.

Typically, memecoins experience rapid fluctuations in price and are marketed as high-risk, speculative investments. If $LIBRA falls into this category, Milei might be absolved of responsibility, assuming he was unaware of the token’s true nature.

Milei Denies Knowledge of the $LIBRA Project Details

After deleting his initial post, Milei issued a follow-up tweet on February 16, 2025, at 12:38 a.m., claiming, “I was not informed of the fine details of the project, and after learning, I decided not to continue promoting it.”

Although $LIBRA had already lost significant value by this time, Milei’s new post caused further price drops, as new investors who purchased tokens after the price fell faced additional losses. Milei remained silent for the rest of the weekend, refraining from making any public statements or granting interviews.

Conclusion: The $LIBRA Scandal and its Political and Financial Fallout

This article delves into the $LIBRA token and its connection to Argentine President Javier Milei. Since the controversy erupted on February 15, 2025, various opinions have emerged. Some financial experts believe Milei knowingly endorsed the project but failed to verify its details. Others claim he was misled into promoting what may have been a Ponzi scheme for personal gain.

The Argentine government has launched an official inquiry to investigate Milei’s involvement with the $LIBRA token, and the Anti-Corruption Office has been called to determine whether any improper conduct occurred.

In the broader context, the rapid price swings of $LIBRA highlight the high volatility of the crypto market. Many crypto analysts believe the political plays around the crypto ecosystem in recent days are strongly tied to President Donald Trump’s active involvement in crypto. He displayed this when he launched the $TRUMP, and his wife launched $MELANIA.

Hence, ensure you do your due diligence before investing in any project and invest what you can afford to lose. We have written this article for educational purposes only. Please do not take it as financial advice. 

To know more about cryptocurrencies affiliated with major political figures in the world, read our latest article on Top Trump Family Memecoins to Watch In 2025.