Senate Banking Committee to hold hearing on implications of Facebook Libra

The US Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs will hold a hearing on Facebook Libra—the social media giant’s proposed blockchain digital currency.

Projected to be released in 2020, Libra will be bought, sold, sent, received and held alongside Calibra, a separate subsidiary group created by Facebook to offer Libra payments. The ambitious project is an attempt to bring cryptocurrency into the mainstream. Unlike other cryptocurrencies already on the market, Libra will focus on exceptionally speedy transactions and significantly reduced fees, all to facilitate instantaneous, international low-cost money transfers.

Several of the world’s largest banks have rebuffed the project, weary about under-regulation in the crypto sector as well as the privacy breaches that Facebook has encountered recently. There are also concerns that the cryptocurrency could be used to extend Facebook’s access to its users’ personal data.

Beyond privacy, some, like Treasury Security Secretary Steven Mnuchin, have openly condemned Libra as a US national security risk for its potential usage by terrorist financiers. These concerns will be addressed in today’s hearing, as pushback against Libra is likely to continue.