An Argentine federal judge closed the criminal case over the $LIBRA memecoin on Friday, October 23, 2026. President Javier Milei, his sister Karina Milei and US businessman Hayden Davis were all cleared. The court decision ends the legal question. It does nothing for the wallets that bought in, and the on-chain record of who won and who lost is still there to read.
What the judge decided
Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi dismissed the case at the request of prosecutor Eduardo Taiano, Reuters reported. The ruling said “the reported events do not constitute a criminal offence” and that investor losses and the token’s rise and fall were not enough to prove fraud, according to Al Jazeera. The judge accepted that Milei’s office may have given the launch “greater impact”, but said that does not make it a fraudulent scheme.
The presidential office called the ruling proof of innocence after “one year, eight months and nine days”. Davis, who called himself a launch adviser, has said he held close to $100 million after the crash and denies wrongdoing.
The hour that made the case
Nansen’s on-chain timeline, reported by The Block, shows how fast it happened. We converted the times to IST:
| Event (February 2025) | UTC | IST |
|---|---|---|
| LIBRA minted on Solana | Feb 14, 21:38 | Feb 15, 3:08 AM |
| Milei posts about it on X | Feb 14, 22:01 | Feb 15, 3:31 AM |
| Price peaks at $4.55 | Feb 14, 22:44 | Feb 15, 4:14 AM |
| Case dismissed | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23–24, 2026 |
From mint to peak took 66 minutes. Two wallets that bought at 22:01 UTC and sold at 22:44 UTC made about $5.4 million between them, per CoinDesk. Anyone who heard the news over breakfast in India was already buying after the top.
Who lost, in Nansen’s numbers
Nansen looked at 15,431 wallets with a realised gain or loss above $1,000. About 86% lost money, a combined $251 million. The 2,101 profitable wallets took about $180 million (Cointelegraph).
Our own arithmetic on those figures:
| Measure | Losing wallets | Winning wallets |
|---|---|---|
| Wallets | about 13,330 | 2,101 |
| Total realised | −$251 million | +$180 million |
| Average per wallet | about −$18,800 | about +$85,700 |
The average winner made more than four times what the average loser lost, and the whole event was net negative by about $71 million. That gap is the usual shape of a sniped launch: a small, fast group collects, and a large, slower group pays.
BtcMedia verdict
The ruling answers whether a crime was proven in Argentina. It does not change how memecoin launches work. Supply was concentrated, early wallets were faster than any human, and a famous endorsement drew in buyers at the worst moment. A court clearing the promoter is not a signal that the next celebrity-linked token is safer. If anything, it is a reminder that buyers usually carry the risk alone.
What it means for Indian investors
India’s rules would not have saved anyone money here, but they change the after-tax result and the advertising. Gains on virtual digital assets are taxed at 30% plus cess, and a loss on one token cannot be set off against gains on another or against salary. Our crypto loss set-off calculator shows how much that costs. Each sale on an Indian exchange also carries 1% TDS, win or lose.
On promotion, the ASCI guidelines require every ad or paid post featuring crypto to carry the disclaimer “Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky.” A politician’s personal post is not an ad, so the rule would not have covered Milei’s tweet, but it does cover influencers paid to push a token. More free calculators are on our tools page.
FAQ
Was Milei found innocent? The judge ruled that the reported events do not amount to a criminal offence and dismissed the case. His office describes this as proof of innocence.
How much did LIBRA traders lose? Nansen counted about $251 million in realised losses across 86% of wallets with more than $1,000 in profit or loss.
Can an Indian investor deduct a memecoin loss? No. Under India’s VDA rules, a crypto loss cannot be set off against other gains or income.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice.