Facebook is rumored to be launching crypto currency (cryptocurrency) on Tuesday (6/18/2019) named Libra. To release the currency, Facebook is supported by a dozen companies, from Visa and Mastercard, PayPal, Uber, Stripe to Booking.com.
Launching The Verge (6/14/2019), each of the companies will invest around US $ 10 million (around Rp143 billion) to fund the development of the currency. The rows of companies will also be members of an independent consortium that regulates Facebook digital coins, called the Libra Association.
The involvement of large financial companies such as Visa and Mastercard is interesting, because crypto currencies are considered as an alternative to the payment network. The Wall Street Journal speculates, the two big companies want to monitor the running of Facebook's digital payment business.
Not only that, both of them will also benefit if the currency is indeed used by 2.4 billion Facebook active monthly users.
While the benefits gained by Facebook are the establishment of an independent body that is predicted to provide protection for users and regulators. Lately, the policy regulators have indeed become more aware of the amount of power possessed by these technology companies.
The overall launch of Libra itself will be carried out in 2020. Its existence is expected to function as a coin, the currency issued to limit the volatility of crypto currencies such as bitcoin.
Stability is a major concern, because Facebook targets user segments in developing countries where the value of the local currency is unstable.
Libra can later be used to send money via Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp messaging features. In addition, the company also hopes that its partnership with e-commerce can allow users to spend crypto currencies to shop online.