Facebook Reveals Details of Cryptocurrency Libra and is Met with Opposition

It was a big day on Tuesday for Facebook, as the social media giant revealed details on its digital currency Libra. The currency will become available for online users next year.

Just hours after Facebook unveiled Libra, Rep. Maxine Waters (D) requested that the company put a pause on Libra’s development. Facebook had been working on Libra for the past year.

Waters, who is the chair of the House Financial Services Committee, stated, “Given the company’s troubled past, I am
requesting that Facebook agree to a moratorium on any movement forward on developing a cryptocurrency until Congress and regulators have the opportunity to examine these issues and take action.”

Her full statement reads, “Facebook has data on billions of people and has repeatedly shown a disregard for the protection and careful use of this data. It has also exposed Americans to malicious and fake accounts from bad actors, including Russian intelligence and transnational traffickers. Facebook has also been fined large sums and remains under a Federal Trade Commission consent order for deceiving consumers and failing to keep consumer data private, and has also been sued by the government for violating fair housing laws on its advertising platform.

“With the announcement that it plans to create a cryptocurrency, Facebook is continuing its unchecked expansion and extending its reach into the lives of its users. The cryptocurrency market currently lacks a clear regulatory framework to provide strong protections for investors, consumers, and the economy. Regulators should see this as a wake-up call to get serious about the privacy and national security concerns, cybersecurity risks, and trading risks that are posed by cryptocurrencies. Given the company’s troubled past, I am requesting that Facebook agree to a moratorium on any movement forward on developing a cryptocurrency until Congress and regulators have the opportunity to examine these issues and take action. Facebook executives should also come before the Committee to provide testimony on these issues.”

Facebook’s Libra is an open-source digital currency that people will be able to use to transfer money to peers or merchants over the internet.

Rep. Patrick McHenry wrote, “While there is great promise for this new technology in fostering financial inclusion and faster payments, particularly in the developing world, we know there are many open questions as to the scope and scale of the project and how it will conform to our global financial regulatory framework. We need to go beyond the rumors and speculations and provide a forum to assess this project and its potential unprecedented impact on the financial system.”

Senator Sherrod Brown tweeted, “We cannot allow Facebook to run a risky new cryptocurrency out of a Swiss bank account without oversight.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in Facebook, Inc. Common Stock (NASDAQ: FB) and have not been compensated for this article.