David Marcus, head of Facebook’s digital currency project libra, said that the company remains undeterred in launching next year, despite mounting regulatory pressure.
Libra Planning Launch for 2020
Speaking with Swiss newspaper NZZ, Marcus said that Facebook is still on track to launch the digital currency in 2020,
The goal is still to launch Libra next year. Until then, we’ll need to address all questions adequately, create a suitable regulatory environment.
Since being officially announced in June, libra has come under fire from regulatory bodies around the globe concerned about the impact of the social media platform launching a de facto currency. Libra will reportedly be backed by a basket of real-world assets and have a 28-member organization to oversee the project to provide greater trust and security.
Nonetheless, Marcus told NZZ that it was unlikely libra would become a mainstay for real-world transactions. Instead, he views the project as a means for cross-border payments and settling small sums.
He said,
It’s unlikely in any case the people will pay for an espresso in Switzerland, Germany or France with Libra in the future.
Marcus also highlighted the challenge of user adoption, calling it an even greater hurdle for Facebook’s digital currency than overcoming regulatory concerns.
Earlier in the year analytics firm Diar published a report on the shifting landscape of Facebook’s user demographics, concluding that a digital currency would be unlikely to gain widespread adoption on the platform.
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