Argentine Judge Dismisses LIBRA Memecoin Criminal Case Against Javier Milei

Argentine federal judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi dismissed a criminal case on Oct. 23 involving the LIBRA memecoin that targeted Argentine President Javier Milei, Secretary-General Karina Milei, and nine other individuals ¹. Siding with a request from federal prosecutor Eduardo Taiano, the judge ruled that the events surrounding the token's promotion and subsequent decline did not constitute a crime under national law ¹. The dismissal applies to all 11 people under investigation, including Kelsier Ventures founder Hayden Davis, none of whom were ever formally questioned as suspects ¹.

In the 60-page ruling, the judge determined that the evidentiary record did not demonstrate criminally relevant deception, citing article 336, section 3 of Argentina's criminal procedure code ¹. While acknowledging that presidential promotion could expand a project's reach and influence investor trust, the court found this did not inherently provide purchasers with a false representation of reality ¹. The court also warned against presuming criminal fraud solely based on investor financial losses ¹. Additionally, the ruling rejected allegations of abuse of authority and incompatible negotiations, concluding that no state resources or official government acts were involved ¹. Claims alleging Karina Milei operated as an illicit intermediary were likewise dismissed due to a lack of evidence ¹.

Background and Status

The criminal probe originated after Milei promoted LIBRA on Feb. 14, 2025, via social platform X as an initiative to finance domestic small businesses ¹. The token reached a peak market capitalization of $4.56 billion before declining over 94% within 11 hours, prompting Milei to delete the post and state he had no affiliation with the enterprise ¹. The broader fallout previously led stablecoin issuer Circle to freeze $57 million in $USDC connected to the project in May 2025 ¹. A parallel investor lawsuit in the United States against Davis and Kelsier Labs was dismissed with prejudice on Sept. 29 by a New York federal judge ¹.

The Argentine court order is not yet final and mandates that the case file be archived only once all legal avenues conclude ¹. Five investors previously excluded as private plaintiffs appealed to the federal criminal cassation court on Sept. 16 to regain standing, leaving open the possibility of further legal challenges ¹.