Who is Hayden Davis? Milei and Melania partner says he doesn’t want $100m stash

This week, the crypto marketplace convulsed successful the biggest ungraded since the downfall of FTX.

Even arsenic investors reckoned with the $600 cardinal illness of the Libra memecoin and the situation engulfing its astir celebrated supporter, Argentina President Javier Milei, 1 fig seemed mislaid successful the shuffle — First Lady Melania Trump.

It turns retired that the brains down Libra, a 28-year-old Texan named Hayden Davis, besides helped the First Lady motorboat her memecoin connected January 19, which concisely skyrocketed earlier plunging and vaporising $1.6 billion.

Now pursuing a YouTube interrogation that went viral, Davis has morphed into the look of memecoins, a once-funny improvement that has rapidly travel to epitomise the dodgy broadside of the $3.3 trillion cryptocurrency market.

Deleted posts

Critics person accused Davis of scamming investors successful Libra, a memecoin that Milei promoted connected societal media the infinitesimal it launched connected Friday.

Milei’s endorsement sent the token soaring, and Davis promptly withdrew crypto worthy astir $100 cardinal from a cookware of tokens wherever investors could bargain and merchantability Libra.

Libra cratered, and Milei deleted societal media posts promoting the token. A national justice successful Argentina is investigating Milei’s ties to the project.

Davis says it’s each a large misunderstanding.

“I’m conscionable custodying wealth that should beryllium for the authorities oregon astatine slightest the state of Argentina,” Davis told Barstool Sports laminitis Dave Portnoy connected a unrecorded video watercourse Monday.

“I was a facilitator. I americium the intermediary betwixt parties. … I don’t privation [the money].”

‘Our extremity was, tin we instrumentality capable liquidity disconnected to get each the snipers out.’

He has present hired a section lawyer who specialises successful white-collar defence, according to Argentinian paper La Nacion. He besides denied to CoinDesk that helium bribed Milei oregon members of his interior circle.

“Recent media reports claiming I paid President Javier Milei oregon his sister, Karina Milei, to motorboat the Libra memecoin are wholly false,” helium told the crypto publication.

“I ne'er made immoderate payments to them, nor did they petition any. Their lone interest was ensuring proceeds from Libra would payment Argentina’s radical and economy.”

Davis did not respond to a DL News petition for comment.

Melania memecoin

Not overmuch is known astir Davis astatine this signifier successful the memecoin story. A autochthonal of Plano, Texas, helium studied concern and played shot astatine Liberty University, the Virginia schoolhouse founded by the close helping evangelical pastor Jerry Falwell.

These days, Davis is the CEO of Kelsier Ventures, a self-styled “web3 innovation” steadfast based successful Los Angeles, according to a since-deleted LinkedIn profile.

And Libra wasn’t his archetypal memecoin.

Davis helped Melania Trump motorboat her ain memecoin successful January, helium told autarkic writer Stephen Findeisen, amended known arsenic Coffeezilla.

That token has besides had a troubled run: The worth of each Melania tokens topped $2 cardinal moments aft its launch. Within 24 hours, however, its worth had fallen by 75%, and it has declined steadily since.

According to Davis, helium was tasked with “ensuring liquidity” for Libra and support[ing] its price.” He controls “all associated fees and treasury funds,” helium said successful a statement shared via Kelsier’s X account.

That mandate, helium told Findeisen, meant Davis had to edifice to a questionable practice: sniping.

Massive profits

Sniping is crypto slang for purchasing a ample percent of a token’s proviso instantly aft its launch.

That allows the purchaser to bask monolithic profits if the token goes viral and shoots up successful value. But it besides means the purchaser could crater the token’s terms by selling their stash each astatine once.

Increasingly blase snipers airs an existential menace to memecoins, Davis said. To support Melania and Libra from the practice, helium said helium has resorted to sniping them himself.

Blockchain information collected by Bubblemaps details the nexus betwixt Libra and Melania.

One wallet netted a $2.4 cardinal nett aft sniping Melania, according to Bubblemaps. It sent its profits to an code opening with the characters 0xcEA, which has ties to the 1 that deployed the Melania token.

‘I person nary tendency to tally disconnected with the money.’

Several weeks later, that aforesaid 0xcEA wallet provided effect backing to the 1 that would deploy Libra, according to Bubblemaps.

Libra had lined up endorsements from “other precocious level people” and was acceptable to merchandise a video featuring Milei, Davis said.

To support the token’s terms up of these attention-grabbing promotions, helium withdrew crypto from a cookware of tokens known arsenic a liquidity pool, wherever investors could bargain and merchantability Libra utilizing different crypto.

Mega Trump launch

“Our extremity was, tin we instrumentality capable liquidity disconnected to get each the snipers out, oregon astatine slightest power them truthful that erstwhile the illustration dips down, it’s not going to crush the full project,” helium said.

After Milei’s video, helium would “inject each the superior backmost in, oregon astatine slightest the immense majority, and make a mega Trump launch, basically,” helium said, referring to the memecoin launched by the US president conscionable 2 days earlier his January inauguration.

Instead, blockchain observers slammed Libra arsenic a scam. Milei deleted his archetypal station promoting the memecoin and tried to region himself from the project.

Davis and his partners person fixed conflicting accounts of the project’s origins.

According to its website, Libra was created “to boost the Argentine economy” by providing tiny businesses successful the state with grants.

The task was developed by KIP Network Inc, according to a enactment astatine the bottommost of the website.

But KIP CEO Julian Peh has attempted to region himself from Libra.

“KIP was invited post-launch to negociate / oversee the enactment of funded tech projects and supply method infrastructure for AI initiatives,” helium wrote connected X.

Primary sponsor

Davis, successful turn, called KIP the “primary sponsor” of Libra. But helium has dodged questions astir the determination to retreat crypto from the integer marketplace wherever investors were buying and selling Libra.

“The question is, what to bash with wealth that’s not excavation — I’m ne'er claiming it’s my money, I’m not moving disconnected with the money, I person nary tendency to tally disconnected with the money,” helium told Portnoy.

When asked whom the wealth belongs to, Davis was astatine a nonaccomplishment for words.

“It’s decidedly not excavation — it’s Argentina’s,” helium said aft a moment.

‘I don’t request to marque shitloads of money.’

Davis claims helium was “instructed” to retreat the liquidity. But helium hasn’t publically revealed who gave the alleged instructions.

Davis believes “people near” Milei convinced the president to retreat his support. Nevertheless, he’s inactive a fan.

Something bigger

Davis besides insists helium wasn’t going to get paid for his enactment connected Libra, describing it arsenic a prelude to thing bigger.

“I’ve made immoderate money. I’m 28, I person objectives that are mode past 28. I don’t request to marque shitloads of wealth astatine this precise moment,” helium said.

“This was an experiment. There were overmuch bigger things happening successful the background. Tokenising a country.”

Aleks Gilbert is DL News’ New York-based DeFi reporter. You tin scope him astatine [email protected].