Argentina’s Anti-Corruption Office has determined that President Javier Milei did not violate any ethics laws when he promoted the Solana-based LIBRA memecoin in February.
The Anti-Corruption Office is a decentralized agency that reports to the Argentine Ministry of Justice. Its chief, Melik, was appointed by the Milei administration in December 2023.
The scandal erupted when Milei published an X post that was largely construed as an endorsement by the Argentine President. The post that was deleted within six hours and contained links to the Viva La Libertad Project website and the token’s contract number, which helped investors find it on Solana, stated:
“This private project will be dedicated to stimulating the growth of the Argentine economy by funding small businesses and Argentine entrepreneurs.”
Immediately after the token lost value, triggering an uproar on social media, including allegations of insider trading, Milei deleted the post. In a new post on Feb. 15, he clarified that he had no ties to the project, but had decided to delete the previous post after learning about the details of the project.
The Anti-Corruption Office classified Milei’s post as a personal, non-official activity by the President of Argentina. It reiterated that the post “did not imply any governmental activity” since it was published from Milei’s personal X account, which receives no official management contributions or public resources.
The resolution added that Milei’s X account, where he presents himself as an “economist” and not a public official, predates his term as a congressman. The bureau, therefore, declared that the post was an expression of his personal opinion, a civil and political right guaranteed by the constitution.
The conclusion was further strengthened by the fact that the message was not disseminated through any official governmental accounts. The document added:
“…the post under analysis did not refer to public policies, programs, government decisions, or announcements with legal or budgetary effects.”
