Argentinian judge freezes assets related to the meme coin Libra

An Argentine judge has issued an order to block assets related to the meme coin Libra scandal, after investigators uncovered the possibility of “indirect payments to public officials” by Kelsier Ventures CEO, Hayden Davis—one of the individuals behind the launch of the Solana token.

Specifically, Davis transferred 507,500 USD to the Bitget exchange just 42 minutes after President Javier Milei posted a striking selfie with Davis on social media, in which Milei stated that Davis had advised him on blockchain and AI.

Although there is no specific evidence showing that the money was transferred directly to Milei or his associates, the Argentine Prosecutor's Office believes that this “may constitute an indirect payment to public officials,” according to local reports. The prosecutor argued that intermediaries may have acted as “money withdrawal bridges” to complicate the tracing of the source.

Therefore, the court has issued an order to freeze assets related to Hayden Davis as well as two intermediary suspects, Favio Camilo Rodríguez Blanco and Orlando Rodolfo Mellino. For example, Blanco is accused of having helped transfer cash through a safe just hours after Libra collapsed.

The freeze order is based on a technical report from the Financial Investigation and Illegal Asset Recovery Committee, along with the Asset Recovery and Seizure Bureau of the Prosecutor's Office. This order will remain in effect until the case is resolved.

Launched in February, Libra was promoted as a way to support small businesses in Argentina and was introduced on social media by President Milei. The token quickly surged in price, reaching a market capitalization of billions of USD before plummeting 90% in a matter of hours, forcing Milei to delete posts amid a wave of chaos.

The analytics company Bubblemaps then linked the on-chain activities of LIBRA with the launch of the meme coin by First Lady Melania Trump in January—a project that was also controversial, rapidly increasing in price but similarly collapsing.

On-chain evidence and shocking internal interviews show that the Solana meme coin has become a multi-million dollar scandal. In press statements and tweets, Milei denied prior knowledge of the project, but others involved provided conflicting testimonies.

The federal Libra case in Argentina is occurring parallel to the case in the US, but focuses on different lines of investigation. The US case targets Benjamin Chow, co-founder of Meteora, as the mastermind, while downplaying Milei's role.

In contrast, the case in Argentina focuses on the role of Davis, Argentine lobbyists Mauricio Novelli and Manuel Terrones Godoy, along with President Milei. Documents presented to the Argentine court show that three months before Libra launched, Novelli and Milei discussed creating projects to “monetize the president's image.” Novelli argued that Milei's image is a “specific personal asset” and does not violate public ethics laws.

A new class action lawsuit in the U.S. describes Benjamin Chow as the mastermind behind the meme coins Libra and Melania, while asserting that the famous public figures—First Lady Melania Trump and President Milei—are not responsible for the “crimes” related to the “scam token.” These allegations are presented in the Hurlock lawsuit against Kelsier Ventures, a case involving fraud and organized crime involving Meteora, Chow, and others.

The class action lawsuit in the US also accuses Milei and Melania Trump of being used as “props to legitimize” the “scam tokens,” while Chow is the “center of the entire organization,” with Davis and Kelsier Ventures operating under his guidance.

Previously, a U.S. court had frozen 58 million USD in crypto related to Davis and Chow in May, but this amount was released in August when the judge expressed “doubt” that the plaintiff would win the case.

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