Argentine President Javier Milei briefly posted on X today to promote the token $LIBRA, but he quickly deleted the post, emphasizing that he has no association with the project. Meanwhile, the team behind the token also clarified that $LIBRA has no relation to Milei, causing confusion in the market…
(Background: The President of the Central African Republic tweeted again: Thanking everyone for supporting $CAR, announcing a new official website and X account, while the community expressed that it’s too crazy.)
(Additional context: The President of the Central African Republic also launched the meme coin $CAR? Facing suspicions of being an AI deepfake, the official website and X account are now inaccessible.)
Following the issuance of $TRUMP by former U.S. President Donald Trump and the launch of $CAR by Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, it was Argentine President Javier Milei’s turn to announce a token address on his X account. However, the tweet was soon deleted, leading to a drastic drop in the token price and becoming a major focus in today’s market.
Given Javier Milei’s advocacy for free markets and positive stance on Bitcoin, coupled with Argentina’s long-standing struggle with high inflation, the demand for cryptocurrencies has surged, making the country well-known in the crypto community.
Argentina’s president seemingly launched the meme coin $LIBRA
Reviewing the timeline of the event, this morning, Javier Milei posted on X about a project called Viva la Libertad (Spanish for “Long Live Freedom”) and publicly shared the contract address for the token $LIBRA. He wrote in the tweet:
The Argentine libertarians are growing!!!
This private project will be dedicated to promoting economic growth in Argentina, funding small businesses and new startups.
The whole world wants to invest in Argentina.
Viva la Libertad
Contract Address: Bo9jh3wsmcC2AjakLWzNmKJ3SgtZmXEcSaW7L2FAvUsU
$LIBRA
However, the tweet was deleted shortly after it was posted, causing chaos in the market.
After deletion, clarification: Unfamiliar with project details, will no longer promote
Regarding the reason for deleting the tweet, Javier Milei explained:
A few hours ago, I tweeted, as I have so many times before, supporting a so-called private enterprise, despite having no connection to it.
At that time, I was not familiar with the details of the project, and upon learning the relevant information, I decided not to continue promoting it (this is also why I deleted the tweet).
Additionally, he responded to external doubts:
To those dirty politicians who want to exploit this incident, I want to tell you: You prove the vileness of politicians every day, which strengthens our resolve to kick you out of politics.
Hace unas horas publiqué un tweet, como tantas otras infinitas veces, apoyando un supuesto emprendimiento privado del que obviamente no tengo vinculación alguna.
No estaba interiorizado de los pormenores del proyecto y luego de haberme interiorizado decidí no seguir dándole…
— Javier Milei (@JMilei)February 15, 2025
Token team: President not involved, $LIBRA is a great success
Almost simultaneously, the Web3 AI development platform KIP Protocol posted on X to clarify that Viva la Libertad is a project they initiated, and President Milei is not involved:
Today marks the launch of the ambitious Viva la Libertad project, which aims to assist private enterprises in Argentina, and the $LIBRA currency has been a success. We thank everyone for their trust and support.
To address all questions, we want to clarify that this is a private enterprise project, and President Milei has neither participated in nor contributed to the development of this project. He has already clarified this himself. This is entirely an independent private enterprise.
Thank you all for being part of this great beginning!
This statement shocked the market, prompting a wave of frustrated investors to flood the comments section with criticism.
Today was the launch of the ambitious Viva la Libertad project to help private enterprises in Argentina, and the $LIBRA currency has been a success. We want to thank everyone for their trust and support.
To address all questions: we would like to clarify that this is a private…
— KIP Protocol (@KIPprotocol)February 15, 2025
$LIBRA market cap skyrocketed to $4.6 billion before plummeting over 95%
Within less than an hour after its launch, $LIBRA’s market capitalization soared to over $4.62 billion, with a peak price of $4.6215, briefly placing it among the top 33 cryptocurrencies by market cap, reminiscent of the excitement surrounding the launch of $TRUMP.
However, with Javier Milei’s tweet deletion, $LIBRA plummeted by 50% within 15 minutes, currently reported at a price of $0.1941, down over 95.8% from its peak.
The team cashed out over $100 million
According to on-chain data analytics platform Lookonchain, the $LIBRA team has cashed out $107 million. On-chain data shows that eight wallets associated with the $LIBRA team obtained:
57.6 million USDC
249,671 $SOL (approximately $49.7 million) through providing and withdrawing liquidity and claiming fees.
The team made substantial profits, while most investors suffered significant losses, leading to strong dissatisfaction in the market. Further developments will be closely monitored and reported.
The $LIBRA team has cashed out $107M!
8 wallets related to the $LIBRA team have obtained 57.6M $USDC and 249,671 $SOL ($49.7M) by adding liquidity, removing liquidity and claiming fees.
Wallets:
DefcyKc4yAjRsCLZjdxWuSUzVohXtLna9g22y3pBCm2z…pic.twitter.com/vpd7nGyMHQ
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain)February 15, 2025
