A Crypto Fraud of the Century? How Insider Trading and Liquidity Manipulation Cost Retail Investors Billions
Valentine’s Day 2025 was supposed to be just another day on the crypto market. Instead, it became one of the biggest frauds in Solana’s history since the FTX collapse.
📌 A new meme coin, LIBRA, was minted within minutes and immediately endorsed by Argentina’s President Javier Milei.
📌 Its price skyrocketed to a market cap exceeding $4 billion, only to collapse by almost 95% in a matter of hours.
📌 Retail investors lost billions, while insiders walked away with massive profits.
This fraud involved key crypto firms within the Solana ecosystem – Kelsier Ventures, Meteora, and Jupiter. Let's break down the full story step by step.
The Birth of LIBRA: Political Endorsement and a Rapid Rise
How LIBRA Became a Rapidly Rising Scam
LIBRA’s launch was different from other meme coins – it wasn’t just another crypto hype, but a carefully orchestrated project with political overtones.
📅 On February 14, at 21:38 UTC, the token was minted on the Solana blockchain.
📢 Just 30 minutes later, Argentina’s President Javier Milei publicly endorsed the token on social media.
🌐 He linked to a website – vivalalibertadproject.com – which closely resembled his political movement, La Libertad Avanza.
His post triggered massive FOMO (fear of missing out) among investors, leading to an immediate buying frenzy.
🚀 LIBRA’s price surged to $4.55, pushing its market cap above $4 billion.
📉 But then came the crash – the token lost 95% of its value within hours.
Who Profited, and Who Lost?
🔹 Only 14% of traders ended up in profit.
🔹 The most successful wallet walked away with $6.5 million.
🔹 Retail investors collectively lost over $251 million.
Milei’s Mysterious Silence and Deleted Posts
As soon as LIBRA collapsed, Milei deleted his post and claimed he had no connection to the project.
💥 Argentina’s opposition immediately accused President Milei of financial fraud, calling for his removal.
💬 Former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner stated: “Thousands who trusted him lost millions, while a select few made a fortune with privileged information.”
Kelsier Ventures and Hayden Davis: The Architects of Fraud?
As the crypto market reeled from the chaos, all eyes turned to Hayden Davis, CEO of Kelsier Ventures – a key figure behind LIBRA.
💰 Blockchain analysis revealed that wallets connected to Kelsier Ventures were among the first to accumulate LIBRA before Milei’s endorsement.
📈 These wallets dumped their holdings at the price peak while the public was rushing to buy.
Davis denied any wrongdoing but admitted that his firm controlled more than $100 million related to LIBRA.
“It’s Argentina,” he casually remarked in an interview, attempting to justify his involvement.
Meteora: A Key Player in Liquidity Manipulation
Meteora had long been considered a trusted liquidity provider within Solana’s DeFi ecosystem.
🚨 Unlike typical meme coins, where developers provide their own liquidity, Meteora actively managed LIBRA’s liquidity pools.
📊 This gave it direct control over the token’s market behavior.
💬 DefiTuna founder Moty Povolotsky publicly accused Meteora of manipulating LIBRA’s price.
📁 Leaked chats suggested that Meteora used a liquidity structure similar to that of MELANIA – another token where they secretly took 1% from a $100 million liquidity pool.
🔹 Meteora co-founder Ben Chow resigned following public outrage.
🔹 He admitted to having connections with Kelsier Ventures and Davis.
Jupiter’s Silence Raises Questions
🔹 Jupiter did not directly manage LIBRA’s liquidity, but its decentralized exchange (DEX) was the primary platform for trading the token.
🔹 Jupiter and Meteora share the same founder – Meow.
💬 “I believe that no one at Jupiter or Meteora engaged in insider trading,” stated Meow.
However, on February 17, a wallet linked to a Jupiter employee was flagged for suspicious LIBRA trades made before the crash.
📁 Jupiter hired legal firm Fenwick & West, which had previously worked with FTX – sparking further controversy.
⚖️ Many saw this legal review as an attempt to cover up the scandal rather than reveal the truth.
The LIBRA Collapse and Its Impact on Solana
📉 SOL dropped from $205 to $161 in just four days, a 21% loss.
📊 Currently, SOL is trading around $172.
💬 The Solana community is blaming its leadership for ignoring repeated fraud within the ecosystem.
💥 Jupiter and Meteora are facing intense scrutiny over their involvement in previous shady projects like MELANIA and Trump Coin.
What Comes Next?
⚖️ So far, no official charges have been filed regarding LIBRA’s collapse.
📢 Solana, Jupiter, and Meteora have remained silent, while the crypto community demands answers.
🔎 Regulators are facing increased pressure to take action against liquidity manipulation and insider trading.
💡 Was this the biggest fraud on Solana since FTX, or just the beginning of something even bigger? 🚨
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