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Meta’s Novi cryptocurrency wallet is shutting down
Meta is shutting down Novi, its short-lived cryptocurrency digital wallet.
Facebook's Diem Association shifts its focus to the US
Diem has withdrawn its application for a Swiss payment license from Switzerland's FINMA financial regulator.
Facebook's Libra currency could debut in a limited form early next year
Facebook controversial Libra cryptocurrency could launch as early as January, but it appears the project has once again scaled back its ambitions.
Facebook forms financial group to focus on payments
Facebook has decided to delve deeper into commerce with the creation of a new group focused on payments.
Telegram to pay $18.5 million and return $1.2 billion following SEC crypto charges
Telegram has been fined $18.5 million for not properly following securities regulations.
Facebook’s global currency plans were always doomed
Essentially, Facebook’s plan to make Libra into a global currency was never going to succeed and we’ve seen that play out over the last ten months.
Vodafone is the latest to leave Facebook's Libra Association
The Facebook-created Libra Association is still bleeding members months after it formalized its council. Telecom giant Vodafone has confirmed to CoinDesk that it left the Association. Unlike past defectors, though, it's not so much about regulatory jitters surrounding the cryptocurrency. Vodafone said it instead wanted to focus on expanding its own payment service, M-Pesa, beyond the six African countries where it's currently available. It's not burning bridges -- the company said it wouldn't rule out the possibility of "future cooperation."
Facebook releases Zuckerberg’s upcoming testimony in defense of Libra
Tomorrow, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will appear before the Financial Services Committee, where he's expected to be grilled about Facebook's planned cryptocurrency Libra and digital wallet Calibra. Ahead of tomorrow's inquisition, Facebook has shared Zuckerberg's prepared statement. In it, Zuckerberg admits that Facebook is "not the ideal messenger right now" and promises that Facebook will not move forward with Libra anywhere in the world until US regulators approve.
Facebook's Libra loses one more member as its council becomes official
Facebook couldn't avoid losing another Libra Association member before it formalized the cryptocurrency's council. Booking Holding, the company behind Booking.com, Kayak and Priceline, has withdrawn from the Libra Association just before the organization's members signed the council charter, elected its Board of Directors and appointed executive team members. The move leaves 21 initial members, including Facebook's own Calibra wallet as well as Lyft, Uber, Spotify and telecoms like Iliad and Vodafone.
Mobile banking firm sues Facebook over Calibra's logo
Facebook's Libra project has yet another issue to deal with: a mobile banking app has sued the social network's Calibra subsidiary over their very similar logos. The tech giant introduced Calibra as the division that will oversee its cryptocurrency plans, including the development of a digital wallet. According to the lawsuit filed by a mobile banking company called Current, Calibra's logo "is not only confusingly similar to, but virtually identical to the Current Marks."
eBay, Visa and Mastercard pull out of Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency
Stripe and eBay have followed PayPal in backing out of Facebook's cryptocurrency, Libra. They confirmed to the Financial Times that they would pull their support, while Mastercard and Visa have also dropped out.
Congress will grill Mark Zuckerberg over Libra October 23rd
Mark Zuckerberg will be under the spotlight of regulators once again when Facebook's CEO testifies before the Financial Services Committee this month. The congressional panel is set to grill him October 23rd over Facebook's planned cryptocurrency Libra and digital wallet Calibra.
EU grills Facebook over Libra's financial and privacy risks
It's not just central banks interrogating Facebook over its Libra cryptocurrency as of late. The Financial Times has learned that the European Commission has asked Facebook to answer a range of questions about Libra, including the risks to financial stability and data privacy as well as the company's ability to comply with counter-terrorist financing and money laundering rules. Officials also want to know how Libra would handle its reserves.
Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency loses backing from PayPal
A few days after the Wall Street Journal suggested that some companies announced as initial backers for Facebook's cyptocurrency were reconsidering support, PayPal has announced it will end its participation in the Libra Association. Founding members invest $10 million to fund the association, and as CNBC notes, it's unclear what happens to that money if participants pull out of the agreement. PayPal: PayPal has made the decision to forgo further participation in the Libra Association at this time and to continue to focus on advancing our existing mission and business priorities as we strive to democratize access to financial services for underserved populations. We remain supportive of Libra's aspirations and look forward to continued dialogue on ways to work together in the future. Facebook has been a longstanding and valued strategic partner to PayPal, and we will continue to partner with and support Facebook in various capacities. There's no word from other high-profile backers like Mastercard and Visa, while Facebook exec -- and former president of PayPal -- David Marcus previously tweeted that the "official 1st wave of Libra Association members will be formalized in the weeks to come." Meanwhile, lawmakers are pressing for CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify about the matter. We'll see who remains a backer -- the initial list of 28 names can be seen below -- by then. Mastercard, PayPal, PayU (Naspers' fintech arm), Stripe, Visa, Booking Holdings, eBay, Facebook/Calibra, Farfetch, Lyft, Mercado Pago, Spotify AB, Uber Technologies, Inc., Iliad, Vodafone Group, Anchorage, Bison Trails, Coinbase, Inc., Xapo Holdings Limited, Andreessen Horowitz, Breakthrough Initiatives, Ribbit Capital, Thrive Capital, Union Square Ventures, Creative Destruction Lab, Kiva,Mercy Corps, Women's World Banking.
WSJ: Visa, Mastercard are reconsidering support for Facebook Libra
It has been a few months since Facebook officially announced its "Libra" cryptocurrency push with support from some big names including Visa and Mastercard. Since then we've heard little about it other than increasing scrutiny from regulators, bankers and politicians around the world, while those partners have mostly remained quiet. The Wall Street Journal reports today that executives from unnamed partner companies have refused to support Libra publicly, despite requests from Facebook for them to do so. It claims, based on anonymous sources, that Visa, Mastercard and others are now reconsidering their involvement altogether. This all comes out as members of the Libra Association are preparing to meet in Washington D.C. on Thursday, so we'll likely find out soon if they pull together or split apart.
Facebook's Libra currency will get half its backing from the US dollar
Facebook was quick to promise that its Libra cryptocurrency would have the stability of real-world money behind it, but whose money will dominate? It's now particularly clear. Facebook sent a letter to German politician Fabio De Masi explaining that the US dollar will represent 50 percent of the backing for Libra. The remaining support will come from the euro (18 percent), Japanese yen (14 percent), British pound (11 percent) and Singapore dollar (7 percent). If you were hoping for currency representation from more parts of the world, you'll be disappointed.
Central banks to question Facebook over Libra cryptocurrency
Facebook is about to undergo further scrutiny of its Libra cryptocurrency, and it may have to answer some difficult questions. Officials speaking to the Financial Times said that Libra representatives are meeting with officials from 26 central banks (including the Bank of England and the US Federal Reserve) in Basel, Switzerland on September 16th. The European Central Bank's Benoît Coeuré is expected to chair the gathering, which will question Facebook over the digital money's "scope and design."
France says it will block Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency in Europe
Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency has run into another stumbling block. Less than a month after the EU opened up an antitrust investigation into the project, officials in France have announced that they "cannot authorize" Libra on European soil.
Telegram hasn’t given up on its ‘Gram’ cryptocurrency
As Facebook's cryptocurrency Libra faces challenges from legislators, another social platform is getting ready to launch its own digital currency. According to a report in the New York Times, Telegram is aiming to launch its own coin, the Gram, within the next two months.