An Argentine federal judge has dismissed the criminal case against President Javier Milei over his promotion of LIBRA, a memecoin that crashed soon after its launch in February 2025.
The ruling also covers Milei's sister Karina, the presidency's secretary general. U.S. businessman Hayden Davis, who described himself as an adviser to the token's launch, was also covered by the dismissal, Reuters reported.
In all, 11 people were cleared, including lobbyist Mauricio Novelli and KIP Protocol CEO Julian Peh, according to Infobae. None of them had been formally questioned in the case.
Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi acknowledged that Milei's endorsement could have given the launch "greater impact,” but said his social media post and LIBRA's subsequent collapse were insufficient to establish fraud without evidence of a specific deception, the report adds, citing court records.
The judge also found no evidence that Karina Milei sought or received money in exchange for access to the president, or that proceeds from LIBRA reached public officials, according to Argentine fact-checking outlet Chequeado.
In February 2025, CoinDesk reported that it had obtained text messages in which Davis bragged about buying access to the president’s inner circle, sent money to Karina Milei, and claimed he could influence the president's decisions. Davis subsequently denied making any payments to either Milei or his sister.
Milei promoted LIBRA on X on Feb. 14, 2025, saying the Solana-based token would help fund small businesses in Argentina. It rose exponentially before losing more than 90% of its value, leading to the destruction of over $250 million in investor wealth.
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