Key Highlights
- Court blocks funds tied to U.S. businessman Hayden Davis and two crypto operators over suspected fraud.
- Authorities say the frozen assets may come from crypto scams affecting hundreds of investors.
- Davis allegedly moved $507,500 soon after meeting President Javier Milei, raising questions about influence and money trails.
A federal judge in Argentina has frozen assets connected to the $LIBRA memecoin, a cryptocurrency that gained attention earlier this year after being promoted by Argentina’s President Javier Milei.
Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi issued the order against Hayden Davis, CEO of Kelsier Ventures – the firm behind the $LIBRA token, along with Orlando Mellino from Argentina and Favio Camilo Rodríguez Blanco from Colombia. The three are suspected of running a crypto “money exchange” that allegedly helped move funds tied to the failed $LIBRA token.
Why the assets were frozen
According to a local report, the order came after Argentina’s financial crime units found that large sums of money had been shifted through crypto wallets linked to Davis and his associates. Authorities fear that the suspects could move or hide the money before investigators finish tracing it.
The total losses connected to the $LIBRA collapse are estimated between $100 million and $120 million, affecting hundreds of investors who had been promised big returns. Prosecutors say the frozen assets might represent the proceeds of fraud or money laundering.
Judge Martínez de Giorgi said the measure will stay in place “for as long as necessary” and instructed Argentina’s National Securities Commission (CNV) to alert crypto exchanges and virtual asset service providers so that the freeze applies across all platforms operating in the country.
Political links and suspicious transfers
The investigation has revealed possible links between Davis and people close to President Milei. Court documents show that Davis transferred $507,500 through the Bitget crypto platform just 42 minutes after Milei posted a selfie with him on social media on January 30, calling Davis an advisor on blockchain and artificial intelligence.
Investigators believe Davis used Mellino and Rodríguez Blanco to convert crypto into cash, possibly to disguise payments to Argentine political figures. In text messages recovered by prosecutors, Davis allegedly bragged about his influence, claiming, “I send money to his sister and he signs what I say.”
Two Argentine lobbyists, Mauricio Novelli and Manuel Terrones Godoy, are also implicated. Reports say they discussed using Milei’s public image to create profitable business ventures — a plan that even raised internal warnings from the president’s own legal advisers.
International fallout
The case now extends beyond Argentina. In the United States, investors have launched a class-action lawsuit in New York accusing Davis, the Meteora trading platform, and its CEO Benjamin Chow of running what they call a “fraud factory.”
The suit invokes the RICO Act, a law designed to prosecute organized crime, arguing that the $LIBRA and $M3M3 tokens were part of a coordinated global scam to mislead investors and drain millions in funds.
For now, Argentine authorities are focused on preventing further asset transfers while tracking how the alleged scheme operated — a case that could become a landmark example of how crypto scams and politics can collide.
Also Read: Russian Crypto Scammer Roman Novak Found Murdered in Dubai
