Libra could become a multi-currency payment network

Libra, the project set up by Facebook and therefore Mark Zuckerberg, could turn into a payment network that accepts a wide range of coins, including digital cards issued by central banks.

Despite the original plans to develop their own digital currency, the social media giant and its partners Libra Association, it seems that they are now considering turning this huge project into a payment network, perhaps allowing them to get around some of the obstacles. regulations that have so far slowed its progress and its launch (scheduled for this year).

Libra and the new form of innovation

Sources close to the project told Bloomberg that the 'new' Libra would be compatible with coins issued by central banks around the world, as well as with stablecoins guaranteed by the dollar, euro and other currencies.

According to an official statement, the association said it was trying to stop the 'top' project. However, the association has stopped providing detailed information on its business model, suggesting that the final direction of the project is still under discussion among its members and that therefore the launch will hardly take place in 2020.

Dante Disparte, head of Libra Association's Policy and Communications, told the BBC that the association has not changed its goal of building a regulatory compliant global payment network, and the basic design principles that support this goal are not been modified nor has this network the potential to promote future innovation.

Who got off the ship before it sank?

The association's partners include a number of e-business giants, such as Coinbase, Spotify, Lyft, Uber, PayU and Shopify among others.

However, in October last year the company suffered a heavy blow on the listing, when some operators in the distribution and payments sector decided to abandon the project, including PayPal, Mastercard, Visa, eBay, Mercado Pago and Stripe , probably in response to growing regulatory pressure from central banks and international lawmakers.

What do the senior officials think

Some of the top regulatory officials who have expressed concern about Libra's potential role in the markets include Denis Beau, the first deputy governor of the Central Bank of France, who told Reuters in October that if Libra-like projects "were to take off, this would raise further problems in terms of competition, policy, financial stability and monetary policy ", insisting that the risks were" addressed before any possible launch ".

However, in November Beau pointed out that an open-minded approach and an in-depth understanding of the innovations that are spreading in the financial sector are fundamental for central banks and their ability to adapt the performance of the different roles they play to meet their financial stability. He also said that the bank is open to experiments "particularly regarding a wholesale central bank digital currency."

And what do you think of the new direction that Libra seems to have taken? Are you happy like this or are you expecting some new moves from Zuckerberg? Write in the comments what you think.