The Argentine National Securities Commission (CNV) has ordered the immediate suspension of all activities related to the ARGt stablecoin. The capital markets regulator today, March 12, 2026, classified the virtual asset as a “tradable security”, and its marketing was carried out irregularly and without corresponding authorization.
Administrative decisions are made after reviewing public information about the project. In it, the organizers presented the returns associated with holding ARGt, with explicit reference to interest rates of up to 32% of the annual nominal interest rate (TNA), raising regulators’ alarm over the financial nature of this financial instrument.
To determine the legal status of an ARGt: CNV applied international standards of financial jurisprudenceespecially the so-called Howey test. Under this standard, an asset is considered an investment contract and therefore a negotiable security if it involves an investment of capital in a public enterprise that is expected to benefit from the efforts of a third party.
If a virtual asset meets the characteristics of an investment contract, it can be considered a transferable security according to the criteria established by the so-called “Howey Test”.
National Securities Commission (CNV), official statement.
As a result of the analysis, it was determined that the ARGt scheme complies with the technical definition of Article 2 of the Capital Market Law (No. 26,831). Due to the performance promise associated with the acquisition, The property is subject to state supervision and any type of public offering is void.listing or intermediation without prior approval of the stock exchange authorities.
The suspension order is immediately enforceable and prohibits not only the issuance but also the promotion and advertising of similar products that are not registered. Although the official statement did not identify specific platforms or issuers, the measure sets a precedent in the supervision of crypto investment products in the country.
This intervention is supported by Law No. 27,739 of 2024, a recent regulation that significantly expanded the CNV’s powers over virtual asset service providers (VASPs). Regulators have demonstrated that they apply public offering regimes more rigorously when stablecoins and other digital assets incorporate elements of collective investment.
The move comes at a time when Argentina’s crypto market is expanding due to the need to protect value in the face of historic inflation. As reported by CriptoNoticias, the use of stablecoins and tokens is steadily increasing in the South American country. Based on this, the authorities have decided to increase oversight of schemes that promise certain returns in an unregulated environment.
(Tag Translation) Argentina
