Online publication The Block has more details regarding Facebook’s crypto plans.
A formal announcement regarding the foundation is scheduled early next week, Tuesday June 18 to be precise, in Geneva. A blogpost with details about the foundation has already been circulated to major mainstream publications under embargo.
The foundation governing the cryptocurrency will be called the Libra Association. The cryptocurrency itself is called Libra and is described as “a simple global currency and financial infrastructure” in an introductory post. The stablecoin, a coin that does not fluctuate in value with respect to a fiat currency or a basket of goods, will be backed by reserves known as Libra Reserve to provide for “stability, low inflation, global acceptance, and fungibility.” The blockchain underlying Facebook’s foray into cryptocurrencies is called Libra blockchain and will be available to developers under the Apache 2.0 license.
The Block also laid its hands on the full list of contributors to Facebook’s foundation. Apart from the names already mentioned, such as Visa and MasterCard, several venture capital firms are also contributors to Facebook’s blockchain. Andreessen Horowitz, among the most aggressive VCs backing cryptocurrency projects, and Ribbit Capital are part of the list. Lyft and Uber have also signed on, as have eBay and Spotify. Nonprofits, such as Women’s World Banking and Kiva, are also part of the foundation. All in all, it is a diverse list that speaks to Facebook’s ambitions for use of its cryptocurrency across multiple industries and borders.
Each foundation member has contributed $10 million and will run nodes for the blockchain’s operation. Nodes contain transaction data and are necessary for their approval. In Facebook’s case, this data is especially valuable since running a node will provide each foundation member with access to transaction data relating to Facebook’s base of 2.5 billion users.