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Facebook’s much-awaited cryptocurrency Libra had launched just a couple of days ago, and within these 2-3 days, the world is all gaga over it. It has managed to get every person who knows about cryptocurrencies, talking about it.
However, regulators around the globe seem to be at a tussle with Libra, and most have denounced it, accusing it of being a threat to the monetary system. In particular, lawmakers in the United States have come out strongly against Facebook’s crypto attempt at global monetary system. US Congress Representative Maxine Waters had called for a meeting to discuss Libra, asking Facebook to halt its development for the time being.
In a TV interview on Thursday, Waters came out lashing Libra, stating that it is a threat to the US Dollar. She called for a moratorium on the cryptocurrency. Waters said,
It’s very important for them to stop right now what they’re doing so that we can get a handle on this. Waters said of the social media giant. We’ve got to protect our consumers. We just can’t allow them to go to Switzerland with all of its associates and begin to compete with the dollar.
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During the interview, Waters pointed out at the federal investigations going against Facebook for alleged privacy violations and data policy breach. The Cambridge Analytica debacle still seems to haunt Facebook. She also informed about a lawsuit accusing Facebook of violating fair housing laws. She further added,
And while we’re doing that they have moved on to develop this cryptocurrency,
Waters said on CNBC,
We’re now going to move and we’re going to move aggressively and very quickly to deal with what is going on with this new cryptocurrency.
However, despite the resentment from Washington, the scenario in the UK seems to be a bit more favorable. Recent reports suggest that the Bank of England is pondering over the option to open its vaults for tech companies. This is especially directed towards Libra.
The Bank of England might soon allow payment processing companies to store funds for a short while at the apex bank in interest-bearing accounts. According to Mark Carney, Governor of England’s central bank, this move will allow them to regulate such activities consistently. The move could be a threat to traditional banks, as till date, the solely had access to the central bank, and was protested heavily during Carney’s announcement in the annual Mansion House dinner.
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Carney had shown a positive intent for Libra. He feels that allowing Facebook to store the sterling funds backing its stablecoin Libra, in an interest-bearing account, would relieve the social media giant of banking charges and the risk of its banking partners crashing down. He further added,
Users should benefit from the reduced costs and increased certainty that comes with banking at the central bank. Unlike social media, for which standards and regulations are being debated well after it has been adopted by billions of users, the terms of engagement for innovations such as Libra must be adopted in advance of any launch.
