Buenos Aires is once again the epicenter of a political and financial storm, as President Javier Milei faces mounting accusations over his involvement in a cryptocurrency fraud scheme that has sent shockwaves through Argentina’s already volatile political landscape. On November 22, 2025, a 200-page Congressional report landed with a thud, directly accusing President Milei and his sister, Karina Milei, of orchestrating a “textbook rug pull” involving the now-infamous LIBRA token—a digital asset that, for a brief moment, captured the attention and wallets of thousands of investors.
According to the Congressional investigative panel, the scandal began with a single, but powerful, social media post. Earlier in 2025, President Milei took to X (formerly Twitter) to endorse the LIBRA token, writing, “The world wants to invest in Argentina. $LIBRA.” What made this post particularly explosive was the inclusion of the project’s specific contract number—a detail that, investigators say, had not been made public until Milei himself shared it. The effect was immediate: LIBRA’s price skyrocketed to $5, and trading volumes soared.
But the excitement was short-lived. As detailed in the Congressional report and corroborated by multiple sources, developers behind LIBRA executed a massive sell-off within hours, draining between $80 million and $100 million in liquidity. The fallout was severe: more than 114,000 wallets were affected, with at least 498 individuals losing over $100,000 each, as reported by the investigative committee and cited by Buenos Aires Times. The panel concluded that, without Milei’s direct involvement, such a dramatic surge—and subsequent collapse—would never have occurred.
Digging deeper, investigators uncovered records of at least 16 meetings between President Milei and the architects of the scheme, including U.S. entrepreneur Hayden Davis and Argentine businessmen Mauricio Novelli and Manuel Terrones Godoy. These meetings, held at both the Casa Rosada and the presidential residence in Olivos, were all organized by Karina Milei, who is widely regarded as the most powerful figure in her brother’s administration. Lawmakers argued that this level of access and coordination went far beyond a careless social media endorsement, suggesting a deliberate effort to validate and promote the project using the prestige of the presidency.
The LIBRA scandal, however, is not an isolated incident. The Congressional report explicitly links it to a similar episode in December 2024, when President Milei endorsed another digital asset—the KIP Protocol. Investigators found that KIP was tied to the same network of operatives, specifically Novelli and Terrones Godoy, and that the playbook was nearly identical: a presidential nod, a surge in trading, and a rapid liquidity exit. “The investigated events are compatible with an alleged scam,” stated Maximiliano Ferraro, president of the investigative commission, according to the Congressional report. The pattern, lawmakers allege, points to a systemic abuse of power at the highest levels of government.
Legal and political fallout has been swift and far-reaching. More than 100 criminal complaints from defrauded investors and civil organizations have been filed in Argentine courts. Internationally, Burwick Law in New York has launched a class-action lawsuit against Milei, alleging violations of securities laws and the defrauding of global investors. Domestically, however, the investigation has hit significant roadblocks. Lawmakers have accused federal Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi of obstructing their efforts by denying access to crucial case files, effectively creating what the report calls a “judicial wall” to shield the administration from deeper scrutiny. Both Javier and Karina Milei declined to respond to the legislative inquiry, fueling speculation of a cover-up and further inflaming opposition voices in Congress.
The LIBRA controversy is only one of several corruption scandals dogging the Milei administration. Another high-profile case involves the National Disability Agency (ANDIS), where Milei’s former personal lawyer, Diego Spagnuolo, stands accused of orchestrating a kickback scheme involving overpriced medication purchases. Personal communications revealed in the prosecutor’s filing show Miguel Ángel Calvete and his family at the center of the operation, with messages referencing undeclared funds and a 3% cut allegedly going to Karina Milei. In one exchange, Calvete tells his daughter Ornella—who held a post at the Economy Ministry and was found with $700,000 in undeclared cash—that “3% for KM is perfect enough.” These revelations have been widely reported in the Buenos Aires Times and have become fodder for both the media and the opposition.
For many Argentines, these scandals evoke memories of past corruption cases, such as the infamous “Cuadernos” notebooks probe that implicated former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. The similarities in modus operandi—collusion between business interests and government officials, elaborate kickback schemes, and systematic efforts to avoid regulatory oversight—have not gone unnoticed. Yet, as the Buenos Aires Times points out, while these stories dominate headlines and the so-called “círculo rojo” of political insiders, they often feel distant from the day-to-day struggles of ordinary citizens contending with inflation and economic stagnation.
Despite the growing list of controversies, President Milei has managed to retain significant political momentum, buoyed by a surprising victory in the October 2025 midterm elections. In the immediate aftermath, Milei and Economy Minister Luis “Toto” Caputo made a series of public appearances before retreating from the spotlight, delegating key negotiations to Interior Minister Diego “Colo” Santilli and Cabinet Chief Manuel Adorni. This strategy, reminiscent of past Argentine political maneuvers, appears designed to avoid further missteps while the administration waits for its new congressional allies to be sworn in and for its ambitious reform agenda to gain traction.
Yet, the risks of ceding the public stage are clear. The LIBRA scandal has become a persistent thorn in the administration’s side, providing endless ammunition for the opposition and complicating efforts to pass a much-needed budget and economic reforms. The situation is further complicated by Argentina’s evolving relationship with the United States. After securing an emergency bailout from the U.S. government and winning the approval of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and former President Donald Trump, Milei’s administration has touted its ability to secure international support. But as the Buenos Aires Times notes, boasting about U.S. backing may not sit well with a domestic audience still grappling with economic hardship.
In a twist of irony, as the LIBRA scandal unfolds, Argentina’s traditional banking sector is preparing to re-enter the crypto market. At the recent LABITCONF 2025 conference, Gabriel Campa, Head of Digital Assets at Towerbank, announced that major banks have developed the necessary internal systems and are awaiting regulatory approval from Milei’s administration to launch crypto services. The prospect of a hybrid model—combining in-house development with partnerships with established crypto firms—raises the stakes even higher. Whether the LIBRA fiasco will prompt stricter regulations or delay these plans remains an open question.
With a new, largely Milei-loyal Congress set to assemble in December, many observers are skeptical that lawmakers will act on the investigative panel’s recommendations. For now, the focus remains on whether President Milei and his inner circle will face criminal prosecution or manage to weather yet another political storm. In Argentina’s tumultuous political theater, the line between scandal and survival is as thin as ever.
