On February 14, 2025, a tweet from Argentina’s President Javier Milei announcing a government-linked token, $LIBRA, triggered a rapid surge in its market value to $4 billion.
Within hours, the token’s price collapsed amid allegations of coordinated market manipulation, exposing ties between political figures and crypto ventures. The incident has reignited debates over oversight in decentralized finance.
Public records confirm Hayden Davis, CEO of investment firm Kelsier Ventures, advised Milei’s administration on the token’s launch. Davis reportedly shaped the project’s framework, though he denies direct involvement in trading activities.
Blockchain analytics firms identified irregular trading patterns around $LIBRA’s release, including bulk purchases preceding Milei’s tweet and coordinated sell-offs shortly after.
Platform provider Meteora faced scrutiny after evidence suggested its role exceeded technical support. Documents show Meteora personnel participated in liquidity pool configurations for $LIBRA, raising concerns about conflicts of interest. The firm’s co-founder, Ben Chow, resigned days after the scandal broke but maintained Meteora’s actions were “strictly operational.”
Further investigations revealed Kelsier Ventures’ alleged manipulation of two other tokens: $MELANIA and M3M3. During M3M3’s launch, Davis secured profits estimated at $28 million, while Meteora received 1% of $MELANIA’s liquidity pool, worth $100 million at its peak.
“When we launched our new memecoin AMM platform in December 2024, I asked Hayden and Kelsier Ventures if they would be interested in launching a token on the M3M3 platform in order to provide an initial case study on how it worked,” Chow said.
DefiTuna, a decentralized exchange, terminated its partnership with Kelsier following these disclosures, citing “irreconcilable differences in operational ethics.”
A video leaked by Solana Floor implicated Kelsier, Meteora, and M3M3 developers in premeditated price inflation tactics. The footage purportedly shows Chow acknowledging the scheme but refusing to intervene due to contractual obligations.
Regulators in the U.S. and Argentina have launched probes into the incident, focusing on compliance gaps in memecoin launches. The case highlights risks when political figures endorse speculative crypto assets without clear safeguards.
Milei’s office has not commented on the allegations. Legal experts suggest the scandal could prompt stricter disclosure rules for public officials involved in digital asset projects, potentially reshaping how governments engage with blockchain initiatives.
As authorities piece together the timeline, the $LIBRA episode underscores a pressing dilemma: balancing innovation with accountability in an industry where influence and anonymity often collide.
