It's just sharing, not promoting; Argentinians didn't lose, most investors are from the US and China... Deleting posts to distance themselves, but then forwarding purchase tutorials, how long can the Argentine president's "scapegoating drama" go on?
Author: Alex Liu, Foresight News
Breaking News
On the evening of February 17, 2025, Argentine President Javier Milei tweeted a LIBRA token purchase tutorial, causing the token price to surge from $0.35 to $0.77 in a short period of time, before quickly falling back to $0.44, with a 24-hour volatility exceeding 50%. This operation has once again caused a stir in the market - just three days ago, Milei had deleted his tweets promoting LIBRA, ultimately causing the token to crash 90%, yet he claimed he "did not understand the project details".
Market Data: GMGN
The farce that began on February 15 continues to escalate: Milei initially announced the launch of LIBRA with great fanfare, claiming it would "promote Argentina's economic growth", and the token price immediately soared, with a market capitalization once exceeding $4.5 billion. However, within four hours, LIBRA plummeted 85%, with a market capitalization evaporating over $4 billion, resulting in heavy losses for investors. On-chain data shows that the project team's affiliated wallets had pre-positioned funds and cashed out $107 million through selling, with insider traders profiting over $20 million.
Latest Developments
The President's "Flip-Flopping", the Market Becomes a Puppet
Milei's "delete-retweet" operation has turned LIBRA into a tool for market manipulation. After deleting the tweet on February 15, he claimed "I was just sharing information, not participating in the project", but his late-night retweet on the 17th once again stimulated market speculation, leading to accusations of "manipulating emotions to cover the team's exit". Facing public pressure, Milei stated in a TV interview on the 17th: "The majority of the losers are investors from the US and China, Argentinians have hardly suffered any losses... I didn't do anything wrong, I just need to be more careful in selecting projects."
"I didn't promote it, I just shared it." Argentine President Javier Milei repeatedly emphasized this sentence in a TV interview on February 17, trying to exculpate himself from the scandal of LIBRA token crashing 95%. "I acted in good faith, but got slapped in the face." Milei portrayed himself as the "innocent victim" in front of the camera, refusing to admit his mistakes and transforming into a "naive fool".
Legal Battle Escalates: From Argentina to the US
On February 17, the opposition party Civic Coalition (ARI) formally submitted an impeachment motion to Congress, accusing Milei of "abusing his power to endorse a private project", and requesting an investigation into whether he received kickbacks from the KIP Protocol. On the same day, an Argentine law firm filed a criminal lawsuit with the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), accusing the LIBRA team of transnational securities fraud and demanding an investigation into Milei's role.
The US community has also launched a counterattack: Previously, a member of the Solayer team publicly stated that they lost over $2 million due to LIBRA, and threatened "hacking actions" against KIP Protocol members; other investors are preparing to file a class-action lawsuit, accusing the project team of using the president's influence to "pump and dump".
Political Credibility Collapse: Probability of Resignation Soars
As the incident escalates, the trading volume of the "Milei Resigns in 2025" betting contract on the Polymarket prediction platform has exceeded $20,000, with his resignation probability rising from 5% before the incident to 20%. Opposition MP Leandro Santoro bluntly stated: "This scandal has made Argentina's international image a laughingstock."
If the Polymarket prediction comes true, Milei may become the first head of state to be toppled by a cryptocurrency project collapse.
Future Outlook
At the legal level, the US SEC may investigate the insider trading, and if Milei's involvement is proven, it may trigger an extradition clause; at the political level, the Argentine Congress will debate the impeachment motion on February 20, and Milei will need to submit a full report on the LIBRA incident to the parliament.
Milei's presidential approval rating remains at 47% due to easing inflation, but his "unpredictable" personality is exacerbating public doubts. Whether his presidential seat is secure and whether he can emerge unscathed from this cryptocurrency controversy remains to be seen.
Conclusion
From "pioneer of libertarian reform" to "cryptocurrency fraud suspect", Milei's 48-hour farce has exposed the absurd nature of the Meme coin market. As the on-chain data reveals the truth: in the greed-driven cryptocurrency world, even a president's account can become a tool for harvesting. And Milei's defense - "I did this because I'm a hardcore tech optimist" - may become the most pale footnote when politicians get caught up in financial bubbles.
"The likelihood of Argentinians participating is very small," Milei insisted. But when a nation's credit becomes a speculative gamble, who can afford the cost of "decentralization"? The answer may be hidden in the next crash's candlestick chart.
