Crypto Advisor Holds $100M from Failed Argentine Presidential Meme Coin

• Hayden Davis, CEO of Kelsier, claims to be holding $100M from failed LIBRA token launch endorsed by Argentine President Milei
• LIBRA token crashed from $4B market cap after Milei promoted then distanced himself from the project
• Davis claims it wasn’t a rug pull but a “plan gone wrong” – waiting for Milei’s second promotional video that never came
• On-chain analysis found $87M in SOL and USDC across five wallets from liquidity pools
• Team admitted to “sniping” at launch to prevent price manipulation by others

The cryptocurrency market faced another high-profile incident as LIBRA, a Solana-based token endorsed by Argentine President Javier Milei, crashed from a $4 billion market cap on Friday, leaving its chief advisor holding $100 million in assets.

Hayden Davis, the 28-year-old CEO of crypto marketing firm Kelsier, emerged as a central figure in the controversy. Davis claims he’s now custodian of $100 million in digital assets from the failed launch, stating he “would love instructions on what to do with it.”

The incident began when President Milei promoted LIBRA in a post on X (formerly Twitter), calling it a token “dedicated to encouraging the growth of the Argentine economy.” The post was later deleted, and Milei has since denied knowledge of the project’s creation.

On-chain analytics firm Bubblemaps tracked five digital wallets containing $87 million worth of Solana and USDC stablecoins. These funds came from removing liquidity from the trading pools that enabled LIBRA transactions. As of the latest data, three wallets still hold $82.9 million in assets.

The launch team admitted to using “sniping” tactics during the token’s release. Davis explained this was done to prevent other traders from manipulating the price. The strategy involved beating other traders to purchase the token first, aiming to maintain price stability.

Barstool Interview

In an interview with Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, Davis revealed the original plan included waiting for a second promotional video from President Milei before reinvesting the extracted funds. This second endorsement never materialized.

Whose money is the $100m+ that Hayden is currently sitting on? pic.twitter.com/mkmq6rcK8P

— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) February 17, 2025

Davis maintains that LIBRA’s collapse wasn’t a deliberate scheme to defraud investors. “It’s not a rug pull,” he told YouTuber Coffeezilla. “It’s a plan gone miserably wrong with $100 million sitting in the account that I’m a custodian of.”

The token’s value dropped more than 90% within 24 hours of its launch. This rapid decline erased billions in market value and led to accusations of market manipulation and insider trading.

Further investigation by Bubblemaps connected LIBRA to other cryptocurrency projects including MELANIA, ENRON, and BOB. The analysis suggests a pattern of coordinated price manipulation across multiple wallet addresses.

1/ How $LIBRA was created by the same team behind MELANIA and other short-lived coins

Featuring new onchain evidence

A thread with Coffeezilla ???? ↓ pic.twitter.com/gNwj97KapF

— Bubblemaps (@bubblemaps) February 17, 2025

Davis acknowledged his involvement with the MELANIA meme coin launch but denied profiting from it. “We definitely weren’t the big sniper,” he stated. “We didn’t make any money. There was no money made from the Melania team.”

Argentine lawyers have filed fraud complaints following the incident. The legal implications for both President Milei and Davis remain unclear as investigations continue.

Two wallets associated with the project have been emptied. These accounts previously held approximately $881,500 and $891,500 in USDC respectively, according to data from Solscan.

Davis expressed concerns about his safety in his interview with Coffeezilla, stating he fears becoming “public enemy number one” in what he describes as a “multi-billion dollar political drama.”

Dave Portnoy revealed that Davis had sent him 6 million LIBRA tokens before the launch. Portnoy later returned these tokens to their source.

The case has drawn attention to the role of political figures in cryptocurrency promotions. President Milei now faces criminal fraud charges for his involvement in promoting the token.