Facebook’s digital wallet subsidiary Calibra has rebranded to Novi, a name that was inspired on the Latin words “novus” and “via,” meaning new and way, respectively.
The rebrand came with a new design meant to represent the “fluid movement of digital currencies,” while maintaining the Libra icon on its logo. An announcement the firm published reads:
While we’ve changed our name from Calibra, we haven’t changed our long-term commitment to helping people around the world access affordable financial services.
The announcement details that users will be able to use the Novi wallet as a standalone app to send and receive Libra digital currencies, and that it will also be integrated into Facebook’s Messenger and WhatsApp applications.
Per the announcement the wallet will include “no hidden charges,” and transactions will be instant. To use Novi, customers will have to be verified using government-issued ID, and “fraud protections” will be built-in to prevent illicit uses.
It further added that Novi hopes to launch when the “Libra network is available.” An initial launch will only include a specific set of countries, and the firm will have a customer support team available 24/7 to help out its users.
In a FAQ section on Novi’s website,e the firm seems to imply there will be minimal to no transaction fees, as the answer starts with a “what you send is what they get,” before adding users won’t have to worry about hidden charges. It concludes Novi is “cutting fees to help people keep more of their money.”
On social media Kevin Weil,co-creator of Libra and Novi’s VP of Product explained the rebrand came as it could be confusing for people to have two different organizations, the Libra Association and Facebook’s Libra wallet subsidiary, with such similar names.
So welcome to the world, @Novi! Here's a little video we made to say hi. Can't wait to show you all what we've been building soon. pic.twitter.com/sSQxoRLi9q
— Kevin Weil (@kevinweil) May 26, 2020
Featured image via Unsplash.