Do you think Libra is a smart move from Facebook?

Abadesi
14 replies
News of Facebook's cryptocurrency Libra was announced today: https://techcrunch.com/2019/06/1... In Europe, some members of government are already voicing their concern: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a...

Replies

Saul Venskutonis
@abadesi in my humble opinion - yes it's a smart move. Of course only time will tell. Will Facebook's tech deliver the expected results? Will it scale? Will the public trust it after all that Facebook has been through? Considering their massive user base (FB, Insta and WhatsApp combined) moving into financial and payment services is genius. It's also a really good use case for Distributed Ledger Technology. However, it seems to me that Libra has been a work-in-progress for at least a few years. When FB execs came up with the idea they weren't under such a massive government and public scrutiny. It was prior the massive privacy and election scandals. Now Facebook desperately needs a rebrand and a fresh start. Libra could be it.
Abadesi
ICYMI our newsletter covered Libra today! https://www.producthunt.com/news... @michaelberhane_ put this backlash on my radar, although I'm not Facebook's biggest fan I am excited about the opportunity this present. I get how its also a move to right some wrongs and position their brand in a more positive space after a couple of years of scandals. I just wonder if this might make governments uneasy enough to finally take some serious action against them 🤔
Peyton Goen
@abadesi I think it will be big for Facebook since their products have been so widely adopted all over the world. I think people will use Libra the same way they use Cash App or Venmo, without even understanding the technology behind it. I think many other cryptocurrencies only attract use from people after they learn more about crypto as a whole, whereas Facebook will get users who know nothing about crypto. Even the smallest of fees will result in quite a bit of revenue. However, I'm sure there will be a lot of protests to this from lawmakers and consumers alike considering the hot water Facebook is in.
Ildi Xhaholli
I welcome all experiments in the crypto space as we are still early into realizing the potential of blockchain technology, however I am worried about the setup of the Libra Association after reading about the requirements for becoming a member: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/2... Libra is a really smart move for Facebook and a brave one as well because it's tough to believe billions of people will trust Facebook to be the driving force behind the most widely used global digital currency after the negative reputation the company has earned for itself around privacy issues. It was impossible to avoid the Libra eventuality, in the long run I believe it's launch will help us gain a lot of clarity around regulation, while at the same time the strong belief in true decentralization will also be tested. One thing is for sure though, crypto is not a joke, and neither is Libra. I suggest checking out the in-depth review of Libra released by Binance Research if anyone is interested in learning more: https://info.binance.com/en/rese...
Ildi Xhaholli
@churchill_leonard I believe Facebook wouldn't publicly release a white paper with such a grand vision if it wasn't fairly confident in being able to launch. They must have already spoken to certain governments. Libra being dead on arrival would be really bad sentiment for Facebook, something it cannot afford right now. Time will tell though... one of the biggest issues with crypto projects is that a lot of them have been promising launches/releases that continue to be pushed back. It's in FB's best interest to follow through with its roadmap, effectively differentiating themselves from these projects. The crypto hype/fud machine is about to get louder thats for sure. Im actually very interested in hearing Warren Buffett's opinion on Libra considering his stance on crypto thus far has been negative.
Tejaswi Rana
Thought they had enough coins to not worry about issuing virtual coins..
Marilee
@abadesi Everything will be cryptonized in just a few years and of course it was a strategic decission to launch Libra coin. I am not sure how many people will use it, but I know that it's gonna revolutionary.
Abadesi
@mari_lee__ "everything will be cryptonized" but what year you think? Thanks
Marilee
@abadesi I think in just 5 years but of course if most of the countires agree to implement the system.
Tejas RD
@abadesi late response but thought you might find some useful points here https://medium.com/swlh/why-face...