In a surprising turn of events, Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic has been linked to the failed crypto project Terraform Labs. New evidence from an April court document shows that Spajic invested $75,000 in Terraform Labs back in April 2018, acquiring a substantial 750,000 Terra (LUNA) tokens.
The Controversial Investment
Spajic’s investment came just days before Terraform Labs was officially registered in Singapore. Prior to this revelation, the prime minister had denied any personal involvement in the project, attributing the investment to the Singaporean company Das Capital SG, where he worked from 2017 to 2020. However, the SEC documents contradict this, listing Spajic as an investor and revealing a contract dated April 17, 2018, establishing his early connection with the company.
Terra’s Rise and Fall
Terraform Labs was responsible for creating the infamous LUNA and TerraUSD (UST) crypto tokens. At their peak, these tokens reached a staggering market cap of $2 billion. Unfortunately, the project collapsed in May 2022, wiping out nearly $40 billion from the crypto market. The fallout not only affected the ecosystem but also led to the downfall of several crypto hedge funds that had collateralized the firm.
Legal Consequences
In April 2024, a jury found Terraform Labs and co-founder Do Kwon guilty of defrauding investors in a civil case brought by the SEC. Kwon, who had been on the run for several months, was apprehended by international law enforcement agencies in March 2023. Recently, U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff approved a settlement requiring Terraform Labs and Kwon to pay a staggering $4.5 billion in disgorgement and civil penalties. Additionally, they are permanently banned from engaging in any transactions involving “crypto asset securities,” which includes tokens within the Terra ecosystem.