Ben Chow Resigns from Meteora Amid LIBRA Token Scandal

Highlights:

• Ben Chow resigned from Meteora after allegations of handling LIBRA tokens and poor judgment in core operations.
• LIBRA token price surged after a mention by Milei but crashed later, causing huge losses for investors.
• The opposition in Argentina wants Milei to resign as authorities investigate the LIBRA token scandal.

Co-founder of Solana-based decentralized exchange Meteora Ben Chow has stepped down after the allegations surfaced that he handled or managed LIBRA tokens. Meteora and Jupiter co-founder Meow, who opts to be pseudonymous, announced the resignation. Meow assured the community that both projects did not participate in insider trading or financial misconduct.

Ben Chow, co-founder of Meteora, has resigned following allegations of unethical practices related to the $LIBRA memecoin. Both Jupiter and Meteora have denied any involvement in insider trading or financial misconduct and are engaging an independent law firm for an… https://t.co/zkWR4vtIvs

— Cryptolenz (@CryptobuddyInfo) February 18, 2025

Meteora and Jupiter have hired Fenwick & Wes to do an independent investigation to address the claims. According to Meow, the results of the investigation will be made public. Meteora has been a separate entity from Jupiter for more than a year. During this time, Chow managed Meteora without involving Meow a lot. However, Meow cited Chow’s poor judgment in recent months regarding core operations as a factor in the resignation.

Chow had been linked to the controversial LIBRA memecoin, which gained attention after Argentine President Javier Milei mentioned it publicly. The token’s value surged to over $4 but later collapsed to below 50 cents. Reports claimed that insiders cashed out over $100 million while investors faced large losses.

LIBRA Token Scandal

The rise of the $LIBRA token began after President Milei promoted it. Hayden Davis, CEO of Kelsier Ventures, revealed in an interview that the development team of LIBRA sniped their token at launch. Davis stated that pre-launch insider knowledge is standard practice for major memecoin launches.

Chow denied being involved in the LIBRA token. He stated, “For $LIBRA, although we were made aware of the possibility of it several weeks ago by Hayden, we had no involvement in the project at all beyond providing IT support.” He also insisted that neither he nor Meteora received or managed any LIBRA tokens.

There have been questions regarding Meteora and my involvement in $LIBRA, so I want to explain our role and share why we work with 3rd parties.

Meteora and I personally, have never received or managed any tokens on the side, do not receive knowledge or get involved with any…

— benchow.sol (@hellochow) February 17, 2025

A video posted on X showed an alleged conversation between Chow and DefiTuna founder Dhirk. In the footage, Dhirk told Chow about Kelsier Ventures’ alleged involvement in sniping and insider trading. Dhirk claimed he personally witnessed these activities during a trip to Barcelona.

🚨 BREAKING: SolanaFloor has obtained exclusive video evidence exposing a $200M+ memecoin extraction scheme tied to @KelsierVentures , @MeteoraAG and @WEAREM3M3_ .

The footage, featuring DeFi Tuna Founder @CavemanDhirk and Ben Chow, lends further credibility to allegations of… pic.twitter.com/rjPLBgKCjG

— SolanaFloor (@SolanaFloor) February 17, 2025

Political Fallout in Argentina

The LIBRA scandal has triggered political unrest in Argentina. Opposition leaders have demanded President Milei’s resignation, arguing that his involvement harmed public trust. The nation’s Anti-Corruption Office is now reviewing the case, and Federal Judge María Servini is also overseeing a legal investigation.

In his first public statement, Milei denied any wrongdoing. He said, “I did not promote that. What I did, I spread the word.” He defended his actions by claiming he acted in good faith and had nothing to hide.

Javier Millei said in a TV interview: I didn’t promote it, I shared it. “Did the State lose money? No. Did Argentinians lose money? Maybe four or five at most. The vast majority of investors are Chinese and American.” Those who got involved knew the risks very well—they are…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) February 17, 2025

Crypto industry experts remain divided on the exact impact that the scandal has caused. Some argue it will not affect the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Argentina. Others believe it brings into focus the need for transparency in virtual assets. Meanwhile, Jupiter and Meteora have reaffirmed that they are committed to transparency. They have also promised to cooperate with the independent investigation.