Argentina’s Milei summarily dissolves unit investigating his 250M Libra meltdown

In a move that’s raising eyebrows, President Javier Milei has abruptly disbanded the Investigative Task Force (UTI), a special unit created to investigate the collapse of the memecoin, LIBRA, and the role the president and his sister, Karina Milei, played in the whole event. 

The decision to shut it down was formalized via Decree 332/2025, signed by Milei and Justice Minister Mariano Cúneo Libarona, and published in Argentina’s official gazette.

The decree stated that the UTI had “fulfilled its objectives” and that the results of its probe had been handed over to the Public Prosecutor’s Office. However, no findings have been released publicly.

President Milei has attracted criticism for crypto gamble

The scandal that rocked the crypto world in February started when Milei, an outspoken advocate for cryptocurrency, publicly promoted LIBRA on his X (formerly Twitter) account. His endorsement of the memecoin contributed to its meteoric rise in market capitalization in a few days, briefly soaring past $ 4.5 billion.

However, the rally was short-lived as LIBRA’s developers and other insiders liquidated their holdings and vanished in a classic “rug pull” style, causing the memecoin to implode and wiping out most of its capitalization, with investors globally losing approximately $250 million.

There are reports of the coin’s creator, Hayden Davis, making withdrawals worth $99 million, with even more withdrawals after the major crash.

Public fallout and damage control

With growing political pressure and allegations of corruption, Milei’s administration established the UTI to investigate potential fraud and the president’s possible involvement.

Critics argued that the unit, which responds to the executive and was run by María Florencia Zicavo, the chief-of-staff to the Justice Minister, a member of the executive cabinet, meant that it lacked independence and was set up to contain potential political fallout.

Milei also reportedly limited the oversight of the Argentinian Financial Information Unit on the case in April, giving room for more suspicion of the government’s intention with the investigation.

The case also moved beyond Argentina as a class-action lawsuit was filed in the United States against Milei, accusing him of deceptive promotion and negligence. The suit claims that the president’s public promotion of LIBRA legitimized the investment, which cost investors millions of dollars in losses.

Milei may not be out of the woods just yet

Argentina is no stranger to economic instability or political scandal. However, the LIBRA episode has introduced a new kind of chaos, one rooted in the volatile world of cryptocurrency, and has exposed the risks of political figures serving as informal influencers in an unregulated industry.

The dissolution of the UTI may have ended a chapter in the executive’s response, but it has only deepened suspicions and intensified demands for independent oversight.

Outside the unit that President Milei dissolved, the Argentinian parliament also set up a committee to investigate the matter, so the investigation may not be over. However, formal proceedings are yet to begin. Sources say that the criminal investigation will continue now that the case has been transferred to the Public Prosecutor’s office.

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