There is a raised possibility that Facebook could use cryptocurrencies based on national currencies, to bring its long-awaited Libra project into the action.
In the wake of growing skepticism about its digital currency, David Marcus, the Head of Libra project for Facebook stated,
“Instead of having a synthetic unit … we could have a series of stablecoins, a dollar stablecoin, a euro stablecoin, a sterling pound stablecoin, etc,”
In his address to the banking seminar, he said, the group’s main goal was to create a better and more efficient payment system. To achieve this, they’re open to choosing alternative approaches for the currency token it would use.
“We could definitely approach this with having a multitude of stablecoins that represent national currencies in a tokenized digital form,” he said. “That is one of the options that should be considered.”
The Facebook-led project had suffered several setbacks earlier this month as the significant payment companies like MasterCard and Visa withdrew from pursuing this project. Besides this, the other key members that have already pulled out from this group are including Stripe, Paypal, and eBay Inc.
Global policymakers and leaders have also shown concerns over it because they are scared of whether this new global synthetic currency threatens the user privacy system. It may facilitate money laundering, as well.
Group of 20 global finance leaders on Friday agreed to set strict regulations on cryptocurrencies and said stablecoins should not be issued until various global risks were addressed.
Jamie Dimon from JPMorgan Chase refused to join the project due to the concerns over digital currency. They think cryptocurrency could cause a stir in criminal activities.
Marcus told Reuters that Facebook still aims to launch its project of Libra in June 2020. Meantime, he acknowledged the fact that they might not meet the deadline due to the regulatory hurdles.
On behalf of his team, he vowed never to step forward unless they have not addressed all legitimate concerns from the banking sector and the regulatory approvals.
Featured image: France24
