An Argentine court has ordered the identification of holders behind 25 cryptocurrency wallets and frozen assets linked to the $LIBRA token investigation after authorities traced nearly $8.2 million across multiple blockchain networks. According to Argentine newspaper Clarín, Federal Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi issued the order after reviewing a report from the Cybercrime Technical Department of the Argentine Federal Police, which reconstructed the movement of crypto assets linked to the $LIBRA case from May onward. The investigation follows the failed launch of the $LIBRA token in February 2025, with funds traced through major exchanges like Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Bitfinex. Prosecutor Eduardo Taiano requested the measure on July 14, nearly 1.5 years after the token's collapse, relying on the Federal Police cybercrime report that traced funds from the so-called Team Libra wallets to major trading platforms.
The freeze covers accounts at six international exchanges: Binance, Bybit, OKX, CoinEx, FixedFloat, and Bitfinex. Each platform must deliver complete client files, including KYC records, IP connection logs, transaction histories, linked bank accounts, and internal memos. The judge held that both the plausibility of the claim and the danger of delay were established, therefore the accounts will remain frozen to preserve assets for potential confiscation before any proceeds can be cashed out. Argentina's Federal Police cybercrime unit will process the requests, with Interpol stepping in when needed. The findings build on fresh LIBRA case evidence gathered from seized phones, with the resolution describing a deliberate laundering pattern using what investigators describe as a 'digital smurfing' strategy.
After the restriction was lifted, investigators alleged the wallet redistributed funds using what the report described as a 'digital smurfing' strategy, breaking larger balances into smaller transfers to make the transactions harder to follow or eventually convert into fiat currency. The Federal Police report found that wallet '61yk' had remained frozen for nearly six months under an order from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, which is handling a separate case involving Davis. The investigation revealed that the funds were moved using techniques to obscure their trail, highlighting ongoing scrutiny of crypto projects and their potential impact on proposed revivals. According to the complaint, the price climbed from $0.01 to nearly $5, a roughly 500-fold move, before collapsing within hours, with a small cluster of wallets allegedly withdrawing around $100 million in that window.
According to the report, token creator Hayden Davis previously said roughly $110 million remained under his control after the launch. Investigators found that four of the eight Libra Team wallets consolidated funds into a single wallet identified as '61yk'. Separate information reviewed by Clarín indicates that the remaining funds are managed through a trust established by Davis, which is intended to distribute grants to Argentine companies as part of a proposed revival of the project before the end of the year. The order seeks account holder identities, know-your-customer records, IP addresses, transaction histories, and other information that could identify those behind the transactions. The exchange responses may now decide whether investigators can attach names to the frozen wallets.
The tracing push arrives as the case's victim-driven side collapses, with all five investor plaintiffs removed in early July at Novelli's defense request, leaving prosecutor Taiano alone to advance the file. Opposition lawmakers have linked the ruling to the Senate's approval of the judge's wife's nomination to the federal bench, a nomination Milei submitted. Peronist Deputy Selva Almada wrote that with prosecutor Taiano stalling the investigation, if there are no victims to push it forward, the case will be abandoned. The investigation follows the failed launch of the $LIBRA token in February 2025, with funds traced through centralized exchanges like Binance. The resolution describes a deliberate laundering pattern, with prosecutors believing traders Mauricio Novelli and Manuel Terrones Godoy orchestrated the scheme alongside US businessman Hayden Davis, who created the token.
