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Facebook’s Zuckerberg reaches out to Winklevoss twins for crypto project: Report

Image by David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Mon, 27 May 2019, 04:19 am UTC

On the heels of a recent report that suggested that Facebook’s cryptocurrency will be called “GlobalCoin,” a new report from the Financial Times stated that the social media giant is holding talks with major cryptocurrency exchanges.

This includes cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, led by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, or the “Winklevoss Twins,” who already share a past with Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

For the uninitiated, Winklevoss twins had sued Zuckerberg back in 2004 for stealing their idea for building a social networking site. The legal battle went on for years and was eventually settled with Winklevoss brothers receiving $65 million in cash and Facebook shares.

Sources familiar with matter told the FT that in addition to Gemini, Facebook has been in talks with crypto exchange Coinbase, as well as Chicago’s leading high-frequency trading firms Jump and DRW. However, Facebook has required these firms to sign non-disclosure agreements.

These talks are part of Facebook’s efforts to ensure that GlobalCoin – a stablecoin with its value purportedly pegged to a basket of fiat currencies – is liquid and tradeable.

The crypto project, which has been reportedly underway for more than a year, aims to make it easy for people to send and receive money even without bank accounts. Reports suggest that the stablecoin is intended to enable users to “buy things not just on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp but across the internet and in the real world,” the report said.

Three anonymous sources told the FT that the project will be “bigger and more open” than just a way to make payments and purchases within Facebook.

Last week reports suggested that GlobalCoin is expected to be launched in a dozen countries by the first quarter of 2020. Facebook has also been reported to be seeking $1 billion in venture capital for this project.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee asked Zuckerberg to share the details about the cryptocurrency project.

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