Judge Drops Case Against Milei and His Sister Over $Libra Coin
A federal judge in Argentina has dismissed a criminal case against President Javier Milei and his sister, Karina Milei, over their links to a cryptocurrency scandal. The judge, Marcelo Martinez de Giorgi, ended the case at the request of prosecutors, according to court records reported by the BBC.
The case concerned $Libra, a digital coin traded on online markets. In February 2025, Milei posted about the coin on X, the social media platform, saying it would help fund small businesses and start-ups. The coin's price rose after he shared a link to buy it. Within a few hours, he deleted the post, and $Libra fell sharply in value, leaving most investors with most of their money gone.
Milei has said he acted "in good faith." In an interview with Todo Noticias, he said, "I didn't promote it, I merely shared it." He said he deleted the post because he did not know the details of the project, and that after learning about it he decided not to keep promoting it. He also said that people who invested in $Libra did so "voluntarily" and knew of the risks.
Argentina's presidential office said Milei was not involved in developing the coin. It also announced that the government's Anti-Corruption Office would determine whether the president had acted improperly. Members of Congress from the opposition planned impeachment proceedings, a formal process for removing an official from office.
The investigation examined possible fraud involved in the coin's launch, Reuters reported. A federal judge was assigned in February 2025 to look into Milei's role in promoting the token. That same month, Argentina's main stock index fell following the scandal, Reuters reported. Researchers also said cryptocurrency worth $99 million had been withdrawn from the token, according to a separate Reuters report.
In dismissing the case, the judge said "the reported events do not fall under a legal category" and concluded that no "criminally relevant deception" had been proven. According to The Defiant, the judge found that Milei's promotion of the token, its price increase and its later collapse did not, by themselves, establish criminal fraud.
