Javier Milei – a 52-year-old Argentine politician, businessman, and economist – collected the most votes in the country’s primary presidential elections. The leader of the political coalition La Libertad Avanza (Freedom Advances) is a keen advocate of bitcoin and a fierce opponent of the central bank.
He has also gained popularity due to a crypto scandal involving the dubious digital asset platform called CoinX. Milei advertised the entity on his Instagram account in December 2021, whereas the Argentine authorities halted its activities a few months later, claiming it had no legal permission to operate inside the country’s borders.
High Chances to Become President
Arguably the most eccentric presidential candidate in Argentina – Javier Milei – amassed over 7 million votes (over 31.5% of the overall support) in the open primaries, held approximately two months before the general election. The center-right political coalition Together for Change (which has still not outlined its nominees) ranked second.
It is worth mentioning that Milei has won a decisive victory in almost every Argentine region apart from the capital Buenos Aires, where Utility for the Homeland (the party behind the current President Alberto Fernandez) got the majority of the votes.
Serving as the next political leader of the South American nation sounds like a tough job considering the triple-digit inflation, the increasing poverty line, and the overall economic downfall that has spread throughout the region.
Milei has previously opposed the controversial policies conducted by the central bank, calling the financial institution a “scam.” He also displayed himself as a proponent of bitcoin, arguing that Argentina could solve some of its issues by opening its arms toward it:
“The point is that the first thing we have to understand is that the central bank is a scam. It is a mechanism by which politicians cheat to the good people with the inflationary tax. What bitcoin is representing is the return of money to its original creator: the private sector…
Bitcoin has an algorithm that one day it will reach a certain amount, and there is no more, and it can compete with other currencies.”
Argentines seem to have had enough of their financial problems and are willing to give a chance to the peculiar Milei, whose nickname is “el Peluca” (the Wig) because of his bizarre hairstyle. In fact, many locals have already hopped on the cryptocurrency bandwagon, converting their depreciating pesos into BTC or USDT to preserve their net worths from the unrelenting inflation.
The Scandal Involving Milei
Besides his positive comments on bitcoin, the far-right presidential candidate made the headlines last summer when a group of harmed CoinX investors sued him for promoting a fraudulent cryptocurrency project.
The individuals maintained that they parted with around $300,000 after Milei advertised the platform on his Instagram account, thus prompting them to invest.
CoinX promised significant returns for its users and claimed it had gathered a team of professionals to give customers the best advice. However, Argentina’s National Securities Commission (CNV) terminated its operations since it lacked the necessary authorization to provide services in the country.
Featured Image Courtesy of CNN
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