Argentine President Javier Milei is facing mounting political backlash after his endorsement of the $LIBRA cryptocurrency resulted in a spectacular crash, erasing $4.4 billion in market value. Opposition lawmakers, led by Leandro Santoro, are now calling for his impeachment, arguing that the incident has tarnished Argentina’s global reputation and raised serious concerns about Milei’s presidential conduct.
Milei’s Controversial Crypto Endorsement
The controversy erupted after Milei promoted $LIBRA on X (formerly Twitter), triggering an immediate price surge from $0.006 to nearly $5 as investors rushed in, believing the project had official government backing.
However, within hours, $LIBRA collapsed to $0.84, prompting widespread accusations of a rug pull—a fraudulent scheme where insiders artificially inflate a token’s value before cashing out, leaving investors with worthless assets.
Lawmaker Calls for Impeachment
Opposition figures swiftly condemned Milei’s involvement, with lawmaker Leandro Santoro declaring:
“This scandal embarrasses us on an international scale. We must launch an impeachment request against the president.”
Milei’s attempt to distance himself from the situation—by deleting his endorsement and claiming ignorance of the project’s details—did little to quell the backlash.
Inside the $LIBRA Token Collapse
Despite its claims of boosting Argentina’s economy by funding small projects, the Solana-based token displayed multiple red flags from inception:
- A hastily created website with only a Google Form for funding applications.
- No clear ownership structure or transparency regarding tokenomics.
- Suspicious trading activity indicating insider manipulation.
On-Chain Analysis Reveals Coordinated Insider Withdrawals
Blockchain data revealed a sophisticated scheme where insiders extracted $107 million from the project before the collapse. According to Lookonchain analysis:
- Eight connected wallets withdrew 57.6 million USDC and 249,671 SOL ($49.7 million).
- Liquidity pools were strategically drained, forcing prices to plummet while insiders cashed out.
- LIBRA’s rapid rise and fall now ranks among the largest and fastest meme coin crashes in crypto history.
Argentina’s Fintech Chamber Raises “Rug Pull” Concerns
Argentina’s Fintech Chamber acknowledged the possibility of a rug pull, reinforcing speculation that developers deliberately engineered the price surge before liquidating their holdings.
The chamber’s statement also highlighted Argentina’s weak cryptocurrency regulations, raising concerns about government involvement in speculative digital assets.
Milei’s Response: Blames Political Opponents
Milei responded to the crisis by deleting his X post and issuing a statement claiming he had no prior knowledge of the project’s inner workings.
“A few hours ago, I posted a tweet supporting a supposed private initiative, as I have done countless times before. I was not aware of the details of the project, and after learning more, I decided to stop promoting it.”
However, rather than addressing concerns over presidential responsibility, Milei lashed out at his political opponents, accusing them of attempting to sabotage his administration:
“Filthy rats of the political caste are trying to undermine my presidency.”
Despite his denial of direct involvement, opposition lawmakers argue that his endorsement alone misled thousands of investors—a potentially impeachable offense.
Parallels to Trump’s Crypto Controversies
Milei’s aggressive “chainsaw” economic approach has often been compared to Donald Trump’s deregulation policies.
Interestingly, Trump has also faced criticism over his meme coin endorsements and conflicts of interest, with investors suffering billions in losses while politicians and insiders profit from speculative crypto assets.
What’s Next?
The impeachment effort is still in its early stages, but opposition forces are building momentum. If successful, Milei could become the first sitting president to face impeachment over a cryptocurrency scandal.
Meanwhile, Argentina’s crypto industry faces renewed scrutiny, with regulators under pressure to tighten oversight on digital assets and protect investors from future scams.
As the political storm intensifies, the fallout from $LIBRA’s collapse may reshape Argentina’s approach to cryptocurrency regulation and define Milei’s presidency moving forward.
