Argentina is teetering on the brink of a major political crisis as politicians call for the impeachment of President Javier Millie over his promotion of cryptocurrency on social media.
Lawyers have also filed fraud charges against Milei, with former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner accusing him of being a “crypto scammer”.
The scandal erupted after the Argentine President published a post to his X social media account about the $LIBRA coin on Friday.
He said the coin would help fund small businesses and start-ups, and shared a link to a website where people could buy the cryptocurrency.
As a result the coin’s value shot up, but then plummeted after Milei suddenly deleted his post a few hours later.
The President has been accused by some people of carrying out a “rug pull” – a ploy to attract buyers to drive up the value of a coin, before a quick sell off to pocket the cash.
They pointed out that the link used to buy the coins referenced a phrase Milei uses in his speeches.
The President’s office denied there was any attempt to defraud people, saying the post was deleted to avoid “speculation” following public reaction to the launch of the cryptocurrency.
They insisted Milei was not involved at any stage in developing the cryptocurrency.
Milei’s office also promised an investigation would be conducted by the government’s Anti-Corruption Office to determine whether there was any inappropriate conduct by anyone, including the President.
However, the statement failed to dampen the public and political anger caused by Milei’s social media post.
Jonatan Baldiviezo, one of the plaintiffs who filed the legal action, told the Associated Press: “The crime of fraud was committed, in which the president’s actions were essential.”
Argentina’s main opposition coalition said it would initiate impeachment proceedings, calling the incident “an unprecedented scandal”.
Meanwhile, former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, slammed Milei for being a “hook in a digital scam” in a post to her X social media account, which has attracted 6.5 million views.
She added: “Look where you brought us with your madness! You turned Argentina into a casino where the croupier is the President himself.
“THAT IS YOUR MARKET FREEDOM… that of the casino. Your mask has fallen off.”
