The global social networking giant Facebook (Facebook) released a stable currency Libra (LBR) plan in June last year, hoping to apply multiple legal currencies as a reserve. The ambition to become a universal cryptocurrency can be seen, but it is also regarded by governments as a major threat to their currency sovereignty.
So in April this year, Libra White Paper 2.0 was issued again, announcing that it would issue a single currency anchored stable currency as a concession. The key changes mentioned in the 2.0 version of the Libra white paper:
At the same time, the Libra Association also stated that it will create unlicensed key economic attributes through an open and transparent competitive environment, and conduct strict review of relevant members. These changes may be helpful to the regulatory issues of relevant agencies.
According to a report by the British media Financial Times on the 27th, three people familiar with the Libra project revealed that they will issue stablecoins that are 1:1 linked to the U.S. dollar in January next year, as well as tokens that use other currencies and multiple currencies as reserves. Will be launched later.
They stated that the exact timing of the issuance will depend on when the Swiss Financial Market Regulatory Agency (FINMA) has passed the “Payment System License Application” review, but it is expected that it should be won in January at the earliest; FINMA said it would not place it Comment.
This time Facebook re-announced the Libra release plan, and to some extent, it may have passed the review and approval of the US regulatory agency.
The Office of the Comptroller of the U.S. Currency (OCC) announced in an explanatory letter that it would legally allow the National Bank and the Federal Reserve to hold stable currency reserve currencies. At the same time, it is stipulated that it is only applicable to stablecoins supported by another currency 1:1, and when the tokens are stored in an escrow wallet.
With this decision, the bank will be able to verify daily whether the reserve account balance is equal to or exceeds the issuer’s outstanding stablecoins.
The entry of Libra may provide guidance for central bank digital currencies (CBDC) and accelerate their launch.
Subsidiary Novi completes wallet construction
Although the single currency reserve is a compromise with the regulatory authorities, some commentators believe that this will cause additional costs for currency exchange, which is inconsistent with the plan’s plan to implement financial inclusion (financial inclusion).
In addition, some critics pointed out that Libra has a close relationship with social platforms, which will cause privacy issues. But Libra plan participants said that it was a turning point for the former HSBC Counselor Li Wei to become the chief executive of the Libra Association (Libra Association) since May.
At the same time, many of Facebook’s subsidiaries also moved, including the digital wallet operator Novi.
Novi was renamed from its subsidiary Calibra and was responsible for creating a digital wallet for Libra. An insider of the company told the Financial Times that, in fact, from a product perspective, their work is already ready.
Although the initial Libra digital wallet has not yet been launched, the person said that Novi has prioritized “six high-traffic remittance channels”, including the United States and some Latin American countries.
He went on to mention that Novi needs to apply for a license in each state in the United States. It has obtained multiple licenses, but it is still waiting for “up to 10” licenses, the BitLicense of New York State.
In terms of partners, although it is not yet clear how key members (such as Uber and Spotify) will use Libra coins, some insiders told the Financial Times that they will first observe the public’s acceptance after the coin is issued, and then discuss further Investment in practical applications.
However, neither the Libra Association nor the Novi company official has confirmed the above news. Whether Libra will be launched in January next year, as reported by the Financial Times, is still unknown.
