‘Banks and Financial Institutions’ are Likely to Become Libra Members

Though the exit of seven major partners of the Libra Association has pushed Facebook’s crypto initiative one step backward, the company is “confident” that it will add 100 members before the launch of Libra.
In an interview with CNBC, Bertrand Perez, chief operating officer (COO) and interim managing director of the Libra Association, revealed that companies including “banks and financial institutions” are interested in becoming a part of Libra Association.

“There’s only one Visa, one Mastercard, I will not tell you that we have the equivalent, but I will tell you that we have reputable companies that are also very active in the financial and banking space,” Perez told the news agency.
Amid the official announcement of the project in June, Facebook partnered with 28 tech and payments companies to provide support to its proposed crypto initiative. However, due to increased regulatory tension, PayPal became the first member to leave the group, followed by 6 other partners.
The executive, however, did not disclose any names of the potential members of the Libra Association. The association recently revealed that 1,500 companies are interested to become a part of the project, of which, only 180 met the requirements and standards of Facebook.
Earlier this year, the Japanese financial giant Monex Group applied to . However, the fate of the conglomerate is still under scrutiny.
Possible delay in the launch
Mentioning the concerns over the launch of Libra, Parez detailed that the set timeline of the first half of 2020 could be pushed further.
“With such a big project and the vision that we’re having, launching a few quarters later or before makes no real change,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Facebook-led association recently with its 21 remaining members and formed a five-person board.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, is also before the House in the US to clarify regulatory concerns over Libra.
“We are aware that we need to answer a lot of questions coming from the regulators and to make them comfortable with the platform and that requires time,” Perez said.