PayPal announced the withdrawal from the Facebook project to launch the Libra cryptocurrency, writes Bloomberg with reference to the company’s statement. It says that the service wants to focus on its own tasks. However, most likely, the reason is that American regulators have questions with Mark Zuckerberg’s project, with which PayPal wants to maintain good relations, Bloomberg writes. All this can cause a big blow to Libra: a number of PayPal employees participated in the development of the cryptocurrency.
- At Libra itself, they quit the PayPal project, noting that everyone understood from the beginning: the project will not be difficult, and each participant must decide for themself, weighing all the risks and benefits.
- Up to this point, Libra had 28 partners, including not only payment services, but also Uber, Lyft and Spotify. By the end of this month, they need to determine their final attitude to the project – so far they have signed only non-binding letters of intent.
- This week it became known that two more key cryptocurrency launch partners of Facebook – Visa and Mastercard – are doubtful about further participation in the project. Payment systems refused to publicly support Libra after claims from the US and the EU. But official comments from the companies have not yet been received.
- The U.S. Congress held a hearing in July with the head of Facebook blockchain David Markus. There, companies recalled past mistakes. Negatively spoke about Libra and Donald trump. He believes that “unregulated crypto assets contribute to crime, including drug trafficking.”
