Argentine Legal Probe: President Cleared in Crypto Scandal

Federal judge Marcelo Martinez de Giorgi has closed the criminal investigation into Argentine President Javier Milei and his sister, Karina Milei. The decision, recorded in court documents, marks the end of a probe into the collapse of a digital asset known as $Libra.

The judge ruled that the actions taken by the president and his sister did not fit a specific legal definition of fraud. In his written determination, Martinez de Giorgi stated that the reported events did not fall under a recognized legal category. He concluded that no criminally relevant deception had been proven in the case.

The investigation began after $Libra, a newly launched cryptocurrency, crashed shortly after Milei mentioned it on social media in February 2025. The president posted on the platform X, formerly Twitter, claiming the coin would help fund small businesses and start-ups. He included a direct link for users to purchase the asset, which caused the price to rise sharply immediately after the post.

Milei deleted the post within a few hours, and the value of $Libra plunged. Most investors who bought the coin during that brief window lost the majority of their capital. The incident triggered plans for impeachment proceedings from opposition members of Congress. Online critics accused the administration of a rug pull, a strategy where promoters attract buyers and then stop trading to keep the raised funds.

Milei has maintained that he did not orchestrate the crash. In an interview with Todo Noticias, he said, I didn't promote it, I merely shared it. He described his actions as being in good faith while the coin's value was rising. He explained that he deleted the post because he did not know the details of the project and decided not to continue promoting it after learning more.

The presidential office stated that Milei had no role in the development of $Libra. Officials announced that the Anti-Corruption Office would examine whether the president had acted improperly. Milei also argued in a television interview that investors entered the market voluntarily and understood the inherent risks. As of the original report, the president had not publicly responded to the news of the case dismissal.

The dismissal follows a request from prosecutors to close the case. The ruling provides a legal conclusion to the dispute over the $Libra coin, which had become a central point of contention in Argentine politics since its launch in early 2025. The judge's decision ends the formal criminal inquiry without a trial.