The Social media giant Facebook will have to meet ‘a very high standard’ before it will be allowed to roll out its recently announced cryptocurrency Libra, these were the words of the US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (Pronounced as if to say ‘my new shin’ very fast) on Monday.
Mnuchin declared that the regulatory arm of the US has already laid clear her issues with this new currency to Facebook as the company looks set to unleash what is going to be a global cryptocurrency with Mnuchin telling all that these sorts of virtual coins have in the past been an avenue for money launderers and illegal actors to showcase their convictions.
The words of Mnuchin at the White House on Monday were “Whether they’re banks or non-banks, they’re under the same regulatory environment,”. He added that the company “will have to have a very high standard before they have access to the financial system.”
The company originally named “The Facebook” was able to introduce the world to Libra last month and the currency is seen as the best bet up against super-star crypto Bitcoin in the eyes of the crypto-analyzers. The Facebook coin is going to be supported by a host of currency assets so it can dodge the usual erratic valuations the other cryptocurrencies are frequently prone to having. This issue so far has been a big deal for investors. Libra will be ready for purchase first half of 2020.
Mnuchin in his address also declared that the US Treasury are welcoming of “responsible innovations” that boost the efficiency of the nation’s financial system before reiterating to listeners that “Our overriding goal is to maintain the integrity of the financial system and protect it from abuse.”
On the company’s claim that the currency could cheapen things and make things easier for people unable to access the traditional financial services, Mnuchin said, “That’s fine (but) they’ve got a lot of work to do to convince us they can get to that place.”
Secretary Mnuchin told reporters that Facebook officials have already been met on the issue with the company describing to US officials how equipped they are to defend their currency being manipulated for evil actions.
The man in charge of the Libra project is David Marcus who says that he expects the government to do a thorough extensive regulatory review of the company’s currency. Mnuchin’s comments have been echoed naturally by regulators worldwide who are not too convinced with what still looks like a pet project of a computer science major. Lawmakers are preparing for hearings this week on Facebook and her partner’s new path.
Tuesday Hearings
Mister Marcus said in a testimony prepared for the hearings on Tuesday that he is only expecting regulators to take out an extensive review of this Facebook project.
“The time between now and launch is designed to be an open process and subject to regulatory oversight and review,” Marcus had that to say, words made available by the Senate Banking Committee.
“We know we need to take the time to get this right. And I want to be clear: Facebook will not offer the Libra digital currency until we have fully addressed regulatory concerns and received appropriate approvals.”
So far companies behind Libra include giants like MasterCard, PayPal and Visa as well as the ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft.
Since the announcement by Facebook, Central bankers have pledged to study this proposed new form of currency and in the past week the United States President Donald Trump weighed in, saying, “I am not a fan of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air.” The next few days will be tense indeed for the nerds at Facebook HQ.
