Facebook (META -10.56%) is reportedly mulling an overhaul of its Libra cryptocurrency in a bid to appease regulators who have expressed skepticism about the social media giant's entrance into the unregulated digital token market.
In June, Facebook announced Libra, a digital currency that could be used to purchase goods and services on Facebook platforms and beyond. The company hoped that it could help the more than a billion people who are unbanked easily and cheaply send money around the globe.
Image source: Facebook.
While Facebook's plans were well-received by the cryptocurrency community, regulators, privacy groups, and lawmakers weren't impressed. They argued Facebook shouldn't have that much control over a currency given its less than stellar track record of protecting customer data and policing its platform for misinformation and fake news.
Amid that opposition, Facebook has had setbacks. Early backers including Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, eBay, PayPal, and MercadoLibre's MercadoPago all left the consortium.
But now the Libra Association is mulling a reboot that could morph it into a payments network that would support several digital coins, reported Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources.
Bloomberg said people familiar with the matter told it the payments network could cover cryptocurrencies issued by central banks and backed by the U.S. dollar, euro, and other currencies. The sources told Bloomberg a reintroduction of Libra could come soon, although the changes haven't been finalized yet. And one source reportedly said a single global coin remains on the table.
