The new Facebook’s cryptocurrency – likely to be dubbed Libra Coin – should be revealed later this month, said one of their managers adding that a white paper for the token would be published on June 18.
Facebook officially confirmed yesterday that the planned stablecoin will not be tied to any single fiat currency, but will instead be linked to a basket of currencies in order to prevent volatility.
Laura McCracken, Facebook’s head of financial services and payment partnerships for Northern Europe said that GlobalCoin would be revealed later this month, saying that a white paper for the token would be published on June 18. However, there are rumors that the currency will not be called ‘GlobalCoin’, but will now be known as Libra, the code name for the project.
A white paper explaining its basics is expected for release on June 18, according to anonymous inside sources.
They claim that multiple investors have been briefed on the project by Facebook and have now been given this date.
This digital token is designed to function as a borderless currency without transaction fees and will be aggressively marketed in developing nations where government-backed currencies are more volatile.
However, some experts are afraid that the GlobalCoin could be used by Facebook to spy on people’s purchases. For example, Facebook could misuse information about its users of buying habits in order to offer better targeted adverts to attract further investment from firms.
Josh Constine, tech expert and boss of gadget site TechCrunch, said:
“A better understanding of who buys what or which brands or popular could aid Facebook in ad measurement, ranking, and targeting to amplify its core business.”
If it turns out successful, the token could have a significant impact in areas around the world that currently aren’t covered enough by the traditional financial system. Facebook’s enormous reach, with more than 2.3 billion users globally, could provide a platform for marketing the token to users that other cryptocurrencies haven’t seen before.
The latest report said that Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg recently also spoke with Gemini crypto exchange owners, The Winklevoss twins, in order to make the deal to list the GlobalCoin. Also, in order to raise $1 billion, Facebook is allegedly been talking to major payment networks Visa and MasterCard that reportedly involves a stablecoin along with a crypto-powered online payments system.
Even though some were afraid that if Project Libra succeeds, it will present a threat to the card companies, analysts think that this will not happen. Eyal Shani, a blockchain researcher at consulting group Aykesubir believes that GlobalCoin will not necessarily undermine the veteran payment networks but help them evolve in different ways.
The company is said to be working on connecting its encrypted mobile-messaging apps with Instagram regarding extending the reach of its cryptocurrency to over 2.7 billion global users.
Facebook could at first launch its GlobalCoin in India since it has 200 million WhatsApp users.
The latest reports are showing that Facebook is collaborating with third-party organizations to act as “nodes” and maintain their GlobalCoin cryptocurrency network through proper licensing procedures. Facebook is allegedly going to charge firms $10 million each to run a node for the Libra network. All node operators will be allowed to have a representation in the foundation.
The company wants to launch 100 nodes to generate $1 billion fees and these funds are going to be used to back its cryptocurrency. It seems that they are asking node operators to stake their interest and commitment, and tie them into supporting the network.
