Hayden Davis crypto scandal deepens as LIBRA memecoin faces fraud allegations

• Portnoy returned 6 million LIBRA tokens after issues over transparency in promotions
• An investigation linked LIBRA and MELANIA token initiatives, revealing cross-chain fund transfers

The controversy surrounding the LIBRA memecoin continues to unfold as Argentina’s President Javier Milei faces intense scrutiny. The truth is, only in the near past, Milei publicly denied realizing in regards to the fraudulent nature of LIBRA, a cryptocurrency he had initially endorsed.

As anticipated, LIBRA, which briefly surged in reputation earlier than collapsing, grew to become the middle of a rip-off.

Ongoing LIBRA memecoin scandal

Including to the controversy, Barstool Sports activities founder Dave Portnoy got here ahead and revealed that he returned 6 million LIBRA tokens to the undertaking’s founder, Hayden Davis.

In a latest X Spaces event on 16 February, Portnoy revealed that he acquired roughly 6 to six.5 million LIBRA tokens as compensation for selling the memecoin on social media.

Nevertheless, since Davis requested him to not disclose that he was paid for the promotion, he returned the tokens. He stated,

“I can’t settle for cash in the event you don’t f*****g let me say you gave me cash, and I’m a part of the undertaking. So, I actually despatched the cash again. That is all happening earlier than any of this shit — earlier than I knew this was a catastrophe.”

For sure, this example has additional raised questions in regards to the legitimacy of memecoin initiatives and their endorsements.

Is there extra to the story?

Portnoy additionally disclosed that he bought extra LIBRA tokens and admitted to retaining them, whilst their worth plummeted. The truth is, he stayed in contact with founder Hayden Davis because the undertaking’s downfall unfolded.

Regardless of the chaos although, Portnoy believes Davis probably didn’t deliberately orchestrate a rug-pull. He’s even speculating that Argentine President Javier Milei’s sudden withdrawal of assist contributed to the collapse.

How is $MELANIA concerned on this controversy?

In the meantime, a joint investigation by blockchain analytics platform Bubblemaps and on-chain investigator Stephen Findeisen (CoffeeZilla) uncovered on-chain proof linking the failed LIBRA launch to a different controversial undertaking, MELANIA – An indication that the identical entity was behind each.

On X, Bubblemaps noted, 

“After analyzing cross-chain transfers and timing patterns, we’re extremely assured that is the case.” 

Moreover, the investigation uncovered a fancy net of interconnected pockets actions between the LIBRA and MELANIA initiatives, displaying how one undertaking’s funds financed the opposite by way of cross-chain transfers.

What’s subsequent?

The LIBRA memecoin has sharply declined on account of these allegations. In accordance with DexScreener, it was buying and selling at $0.3500 at press time, after dropping by 13.84% within the final 24 hours

As anticipated, this has additional deepened the uncertainty surrounding an already controversial state of affairs, with buyers and business consultants now questioning the true nature of those initiatives and their broader implications for the crypto house.