Facebook announced a "small pilot launch" of cryptocurrency wallet Novi
Facebook is finally testing Novi, the digital wallet the company has been talking about for more than two years. Facebook's head of payments David Marcus announced that the company is launching a "small pilot" of Novi in the U.S. and Guatemala, with the goal of enabling family members to send money transfers across borders.
We're doing a pilot to test core feature functions, and our operational capabilities in customer care and compliance. We're also hopeful this will demonstrate a new stablecoin use case (as a payments instrument) beyond how they are typically used today. 2/8
- David Marcus (@davidmarcus) October 19, 2021
The fact that Novi has finally launched, even in a limited form, may seem like a significant step forward for Facebook's cryptocurrency plans. However, the company is launching a wallet without Diem, its planned cryptocurrency (formerly called Libra), which has faced a wave of opposition from lawmakers and regulators around the world.
Instead, the initial pilot will use Pax Dollar (USDP), which Marcus said "has been successful for more than three years and has important regulatory and consumer protection attributes." He added that Facebook is partnering with Coinbase on this pilot.
News of the pilot has already sparked new criticism from lawmakers. On Tuesday, hours after Marcus' initial statement, a group of five Democratic senators sent a letter to Facebook asking the company to "immediately terminate the Novi pilot and commit to not bringing Diem to market."
Beyond the pilot, our business model is clear. We're a challenger in payments. We'll offer free person-to-person payments using Novi. Once we have a solid customer base, we'll offer cheaper merchant payments and make a profit on merchant services. 6/8
- David Marcus (@davidmarcus) October 19, 2021
A Novi spokesperson said "we're preparing a response to the Committee letter" but would not elaborate. In his initial statement, Marcus said the company remains committed to launching Diem. "I want to clarify that our support for Diem has not changed and we intend to launch Novi with Diem as soon as it receives regulatory approval and goes live," he wrote.
Source: @davidmarcus, engadget
Illustration: Anadolu Agency
