It is no longer news that most authorities are not very supportive of Facebook’s Libra, with some even publicly saying they will do everything they can to stifle its growth. Now, France’s Minister of Finance, Bruno Le Maire, has suggested that Europe should get to the drawing board to create its own cryptocurrency. This seems to feed the notion that a lot of European politicians have against the Libra in particular, and has been touched on by the G7.
According to Le Maire at a meeting in Helsinki, Finland, plans would begin with a feasibility study next month, to carefully look at the possibility of creating a digital currency that will cater to the European continent. In the past, Le Maire has been vocal about his displeasure towards Facebook’s Libra. The minister believes that a project like that would create more problems with Facebook’s access to data.
He said:
“We have to make sure that there is no risk for the consumer [and] it is our role as a state to protect consumers. [The Libra] will allow Facebook to accumulate millions and millions of data again, which strengthens me in my belief that it is necessary to regulate the digital giants.”
Regardless of this stand, Le Maire believes that the European Union would need to decide on a proper classification of cryptocurrencies about whether or not they should be securities or just currencies. In the absence of regulation and proper classification, Le Maire remains resolute against the Libra. During the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum 2019 held in Paris, Le Maire said:
“All these concerns around Libra are serious. So I want to say this with a lot of clarity: I want to be absolutely clear: in these conditions, we cannot authorize the development of Libra on European soil.
Image Credits: Pixabay
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