Facebook has a second chance to sell Libra on Capitol Hill today
Facebook will have another chance to sell lawmakers on Libra Wednesday.
Facebook executive David Marcus, who heads Libra, is testifying before the House Financial Services Committee this morning. It’s the second day of testimony for Marcus, who spoke before the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday. That turned out to be a tense discussion on Facebook’s fitness to run a universal currency.
Wednesday’s hearing will also include a panel of experts on fintech and consumers who will discuss the potential implications of Libra.
Members of the House Committee plan to ask Facebook about their wide-ranging concerns about Libra, including investor protections, national security and monetary policy implications. Marcus probably won’t face a friendly audience — Committee Democrats have asked Facebook to halt Libra’s development until lawmakers can take regulatory action. And Chairwoman Maxine Waters plans to bring up during the hearing a discussion draft of legislation aimed at making Libra illegal.
“Facebook is continuing its unchecked expansion and extending its reach into the lives of its users,” Waters said in a statement last month. “Regulators should see this as a wake-up call to get serious about the privacy and national security concerns, cybersecurity risks and trading risks that are posed by cryptocurrencies.”
Tuesday’s Senate hearing made it clear that lawmakers don’t trust Facebook because of its past scandals and are wary of the company’s efforts to develop a cryptocurrency at a time when that market remains largely unregulated.
Marcus stressed to senators that getting behind the project doesn’t necessarily require trusting Facebook, because the currency will be managed by a consortium of companies and nonprofits of which Facebook is only one of 28 members. He also repeated the company’s desire to work with regulators on Libra.
“We expect the review of Libra to be among the most extensive ever,” Marcus said.
The company has said it will delay the launch of its products for using Libra until it receives proper regulatory approval, though the currency itself could still launch without those products. Libra will make sending money around the world easier and cheaper, and could improve access to financial services, the company says.
Many lawmakers agree that money is moving the way of the internet, and that it’s important for America to be on the forefront of that innovation. But they’re unsure that Facebook should be the one to bring such an ambitious project to life. The company will again try to convince them otherwise during Wednesday’s hearing.
