Portnoy spent 29,000 SOL worth $5.77 million on the LIBRA token roughly 9 minutes after it launched but has since received compensation for his losses.
Over the past few days, the crypto space has been racked with pump-and-dump allegations surrounding a token backed by Argentina President Javier Milei. However, while thousands of investors in the so-called LIBRA token have been left in the red, at least one insider who lost millions has been compensated.
Dave Portnoy Recoups Losses
One insider who had lost about $5.34 million on LIBRA was compensated $5 million.
This insider, none other than Barstool founder David Portnoy, had spent 29,000 SOL worth $5.77 million on LIBRA tokens roughly 9 minutes after it launched at $2.51 per coin but quickly lost over $5 million as the token crashed amid speculation of foul play and as President Milei pulled his support, Lookonchain analysis showed on Monday, February 17.
After the loss, however, Portnoy was sent 5 million USDC in two tranches of 4.5 million USDC and 500,000 USDC. He also dumped his remaining LIBRA holdings after receiving this compensation.
The Lookonchain analysis broadly aligns with Portnoy’s account of events in a Monday, February 17, X post. The Barstool founder defended his refund by asserting that he was entitled to it as he had only invested in it thanks to trust in the primary member of the token creator team, adding that this individual had claimed that the refund was out of pocket.
For the record I could care less that people know Hayden paid me back. I was fully planning on saying it on the live stream but he caught me off guard by texting me in the middle of it and asking me not to mention it. You can actually see my eyes read the text in real time… pic.twitter.com/DR4pqpDKhS
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) February 17, 2025
The individual in question is crypto key opinion leader Hayden Davis, aka Kelsier Ventures. On Sunday, February 16, Portnoy disclosed that he was willing to become an advisor on the project following conversations with Davis and research on Milei. He also disclosed that he had received 6 million LIBRA to promote the project, which he has since returned.
The LIBRA Saga
The LIBRA saga began with a now-deleted X post on Friday, February 14, from Argentina President Javier Milei announcing the project’s launch to “encourage the growth of the Argentine economy.”
Unsurprisingly, crypto market speculators rushed to purchase the token, and its market cap quickly reached above $4 billion.
However, concerns just as quickly emerged, as crypto analytics platforms started to report that the token creator was taking out liquidity from the project to the tune of $87 million.
These concerns gained prominence as Milei pulled his support for the project, stressing that he was not associated with it and was previously unaware of the details. He added that having become aware of the details, he was no longer interested in pushing it.
At this point, the token has crashed to over 90% as investors rushed to exit.
Just a Big Misunderstanding?
In an interview with “internet detective” Stephen “Coffeezilla” Findstein, Hayden Davis, who has admitted to being in control of the project’s liquidity and treasury, asserted that the move to pull out liquidity and even insider trading that yielded $6 million in profits, were all part of a complex strategy to support the project.
He argued that liquidity was pulled from the market to ensure that external snipers who had become whales did not dump all their holdings at once, crashing the market. He claimed that liquidity would have been put back as marketing efforts brought in more investors that could allow the market to mature. He claimed the same for the $6 million obtained from insider trading.
Davis has admitted to be sitting on about $100 million from LIBRA, which he has committed to put back into the market within the next 48 hours.
Whether this will be enough to make investors besides Barstool’s Portnoy whole remains to be seen.
Milei, meanwhile, faces the threat of impeachment and a fraud lawsuit. Davis has also been linked to the Melania Trump-backed MELANIA token.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
