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Facebook is set to unveil the details of its cryptocurrency project, codenamed Libra, with its white paper scheduled for release on June 18, Laura McCracken, the social media giant’s head of financial services and payment partnerships for Northern Europe, told German magazine WirtschaftsWoche.
This is probably the first time that an executive has confirmed the firm's cryptocurrency plans.
In addition, the upcoming currency, which is said to be called GlobalCoin, will not be linked to any single fiat currency, which many speculated it will be pegged to the US dollar. It will instead be tied to a basket of currencies to avoid price fluctuations, the executive said.
So far, here are the things that have been floating in the media about Facebook’s blockchain project in the past couple of weeks:
- The project will likely bear the codename Libra as its public facing name. It can be recalled that Facebook registered a new financial technology company, Libra Networks, in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 2.
- Facebook will allow users to trade, store, and exchange its stablecoin via its apps such as WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram, with possible access through physical ATM-like machines. It will also reportedly be a borderless currency with no transaction fees.
- The social network will also tap third-party organizations to cede control of the cryptocurrency and ensure the digital asset will not be centralized. Facebook will reportedly charge $10 million each for a privilege to act as a “node” on the network to help validate the transactions made by its stablecoin.
- Facebook has reported onboarded around 100 people for its cryptocurrency project, with David Marcus, head of Messenger, former president of Paypal, and board member of Coinbase, heading the network’s blockchain project.
According to BBC, Facebook is planning to formally launch its cryptocurrency next year.
