Zach Burke warned that if Facebook could not establish a new global cryptocurrency, technology companies in other countries such as China might intervene and they would take advantage of this opportunity.

This article is from Netease Technology

October 23, according to foreign media reports, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, the world’s largest social networking company, plans to speak at the US House of Representatives Financial Services Committee hearing on Wednesday. Facebook’s Libra project defended it and said it would not launch the cryptocurrency without US government approval.

Before the hearing, Zuckerberg argued in a prepared speech that Facebook is seeking to provide an affordable solution for existing cross-border remittances.

“People pay too much, and they have to wait too long to send the money home.” Zuckerberg wrote in the speech, “The current system disappoints them.” p>

The content of the hearing will focus on Facebook’s impact on the financial services and housing industries, so Libra will be a major focus. However, the concerns of the hearing may also involve other controversial topics of the company, including user privacy, election advertising, and targeted advertising.

Libra coins have been strongly criticized by politicians and legislators. In July of this year, David Marcus, the executive in charge of the Libracoin project, testified at the hearing of the same topic of the House Financial Services Committee, feeling that one of the main concerns of the hearing was Facebook’s project on the Libracoin project. Deep participation. Other issues raised by regulators include that Librae may become a currency for governments to monitor poorly – which would lead to criminal activity; and whether it is trustworthy and let Facebook have the data generated by transactions on the platform.

“These are things that need to be built, but I know that we are not the ideal messenger now,” Zuckerberg wrote in his speech. “In the past few years, we have faced many problems, I I’m sure that even if Facebook doesn’t do this, people will want others to come up with this idea.”

Zuckerbock warned that if Facebook could not establish a new global cryptocurrency, technology companies in other countries such as China might intervene and they would take advantage of this opportunity.

“When we discuss these issues, the rest of the world is not waiting.” He wrote, “If the United States does not innovate, our financial leadership will not be guaranteed.”

“We don’t want to be leaders who advance these efforts.” Zuckerberg said in the testimony that “the Libra Coin Association has been established, has a governance structure, and will promote the project from now on.” .”

But he stressed that Facebook will not launch the Libra Currency Payment System anywhere in the world until approved by US government regulators. He wrote, “The last time I testified in Congress, I talked about taking a broader view of our responsibilities. This includes ensuring that our services are used for good deeds and preventing harm.”

The House Financial Services Committee is very concerned about Zuckerbock because his company is still at the heart of the Tiancoin project. One of the things he will be able to discuss at the committee hearing is how Facebook plans to integrate this new digital currency into existing products, such as WhatsApp and Messenger mobile apps. Facebook has a total of four independent digital platforms, each with at least 1 billion users, and its main social networking platform has more than 2 billion users.

Warren Davidson, a member of the House Financial Services Committee and a Republican from Ohio, said, “Facebook has got a lot of data from users’ activities, and they are now mixing this database with financial transactions. ?”

Since launching the project in June this year, Facebook has been under attack. However, Facebook is still trying to focus on the main goal of the Tiancoin project, which is to meet the actual needs of the international currency transfer field.

People are sending more money to low- and middle-income countries than ever before, but remittances are expensive. According to a World Bank report in April this year, the total amount of remittances flowing to these countries in 2018 reached $529 billion, an increase of nearly 10% from the record $4.83 billion in 2017. According to the report, during this period, the cost of international remittances of $200 was as high as 7%. According to the World Bank, the use of banks is often the most expensive method of remittances, with an average handling fee of 11% in the first quarter of 2019. (Tianmen Mountain)