Source: Visa, Mastercard, Others Reconsider Involvement in Facebook’s Libra Network – WSJ
After backlash from U.S. and European government officials, executives of some of Libra’s backers have declined Facebook’s requests to publicly support the project
Frankly, this smells of another Zuckerberg half-baked idea to recover Facebook’s glory days, which has gone off the rails, which were built on peddling private personal information. Facebook also recently fell on its face attempting to promote itself in India with a pitifully poor understanding of the Indian market.
Visa Inc., Mastercard Inc. and other key financial partners that signed on to help build and maintain the Libra payments network are reconsidering their involvement following backlash from U.S. and European government officials, according to people familiar with the matter. Wary of attracting regulatory scrutiny, executives of some of Libra’s backers have declined Facebook’s requests to publicly support the project, the people said.
Major defections could imperil Libra, Facebook’s audacious attempt to convince consumers to swap their national currencies for a digital coin that could be used to pay for goods and services on the internet. Without a network of financial partners that could help transfer currencies into Libra and global retailers to accept it as a form of payment, Libra’s reach would be limited.
Write to AnnaMaria Andriotis at AnnaMaria.Andriotis@wsj.com and Peter Rudegeair at Peter.Rudegeair@wsj.com
