Facebook’s Libra Preparing for January Launch

Following the announcement that was made in June of 2019. Facebook is now preparing to launch its very own digital currency, Libra. The Financial Times reported that the launch could be set for early in 2021 and will feature a single cryptocurrency which has been scaled down from the initial plan. For now, Libra will be aimed specifically at the dollar value (librausd) and plans to roll out backing for the rest of all major currencies at a later point.

Traditional regulations slowing progress

Libra would ideally offer an exchange rate for a vast range of traditional currencies, however, regulatory bodies have been slowing this process down as concerns have been raised surrounding financial stability within traditional markets. The Libra Association in Geneva is now awaiting approval from the Financial Market Supervisory Authority before it can look at progressing towards having an exchange backed by global currencies.

The project had initially planned to launch a cryptocurrency very similar to that of Bitcoin, however, over the course of the past two years, large companies that had invested within the project have since backed out. This has forced the Libra Association to radically change its approach towards the digital currency and has now transformed into more of an ewallet payment system. FINMA has also managed to delay the rollout of the payment system and so the launch in January will only feature Libra as a stablecoin, which is fixed to the dollar value.

The stablecoin will be launched alongside a wallet called Novi. This will allow users of Facebook and Whatsapp to manage their Libra funds from the social media applications. The launch is initially aimed at the North American market since the only backing that could be obtained is relevant to the U.S dollar. This may prove to be a beneficial period for the stablecoin as the market can be tested before proceeding with a global roll out. The cornerstone of the crypto market has always been the anonymity of financial transactions, with Facebook’s shady history of data collection, many users have expressed concerns surrounding the privacy of this new cryptocurrency.

Facebook Revamps Cryptocurrency Libra