Argentina freezes Hayden Davis assets, LIBRA token investigation approaches close to President Milei's confidant

Argentine federal judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi on November 11th ordered an indefinite freeze on all financial assets of Kelsier Ventures CEO Hayden Mark Davis and two associated individuals, accusing them of illegal fund transfers through the LIBRA token project. Investigations revealed that Davis had multiple meetings with Javier Milei at the Casa Rosada presidential palace, with the flow of funds involving lobbyists within Milei’s core circle. This case marks the first time Argentina has incorporated cryptocurrency transactions into a major political corruption investigation, with prosecutors requesting local virtual asset service providers to cooperate in freezing the involved wallets.

Asset Freeze Details: Three Key Figures and Fund Flows

Federal Judge Martínez de Giorgi, upon application by prosecutor Eduardo Taiano, issued asset freezes against Hayden Davis, Colombian national Favio Camilo Rodríguez Blanco, and Argentine national Orlando Rodolfo Mellino. Technical reports from Argentina’s financial investigation and asset recovery agency identified Rodríguez Blanco and Mellino as the key wallet owners receiving funds from Davis, with transaction timelines closely aligning with the launch of the LIBRA token. The judge emphasized that “sufficient evidence” suggests the defendants may have transferred or hidden digital assets, prompting preventive measures. The National Securities Commission has issued alerts to all virtual asset service providers operating in Argentina, requesting to extend the freeze to digital currencies.

LIBRA Token Fund Flows and Intermediary Network

Investigations found that Rodríguez Blanco’s CEX accounts were used to convert digital currencies into cash to conceal the final recipients. For example, on January 30th, less than an hour after Milei and Davis met at the presidential palace and posted a selfie, a $507,500 transfer occurred via a CEX platform. Another key event was on February 17th—days after the LIBRA collapse—when surveillance footage captured sister and mother of lobbyist Mauricio Novelli withdrawing multiple bags of cash from Banco Galicia branches. Mellino acted as a direct intermediary between Davis and other suspects; prosecutors believe these transfers were essentially “indirect payments to government officials.”

Key Transaction Data in the LIBRA Case

• Asset freeze scope: all financial and digital assets
• Core transfer amount: $507,500 (CEX transfer on January 30th)
• Involved exchanges: mainstream CEX platforms
• Investigation period: January to February 2024
• Associated political figures: 2 Milei campaign lobbyists

Political Background: Milei’s Cryptocurrency Stance and Regulatory Challenges

President Javier Milei, since taking office in 2023, has publicly supported cryptocurrencies, even considering replacing the Argentine peso with Bitcoin. However, the LIBRA token project—whose white paper claimed to create an “Argentine national stablecoin”—collapsed suddenly in February, causing thousands of investors to lose money. Congress subsequently established a LIBRA investigation committee, demanding transaction records from major CEXs. The case exposed regulatory gaps in Argentina’s virtual asset sector: despite amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Law in 2024 requiring VASPs to register, enforcement remains weak. Analysts suggest that if investigations confirm involvement of presidential allies, it could undermine Milei’s push for “financial dollarization” reforms.

The Role of Cryptocurrency in Latin American Money Laundering Investigations

This case marks the first time in Latin America that on-chain analysis has been systematically used in political corruption probes. Prosecutors linked Davis’s wallet addresses with Rodríguez Blanco’s accounts to construct “digital currency-to-cash” conversion pathways. Similar patterns have appeared in money laundering cases in Brazil and Mexico, but Argentina’s approach is innovative in combining exchange account monitoring with bank withdrawal surveillance. Notably, the involved accounts processed over $3 million during January and February, with 87% ultimately converted into cash. This “nested mixing” technique exploits KYC loopholes at exchanges, blurring the true beneficial owners of the funds.

Conclusion

Argentina’s freezing of Hayden Davis’s assets is not only a legal response to a specific token project but also a warning regarding cryptocurrency involvement in political funding flows. As investigations deepen, the LIBRA case could reshape digital asset regulation across Latin America, while also testing Milei’s government’s ability to balance innovation promotion with anti-corruption efforts.