Zuckerberg: Facebook Would Take New Approach with Libra

Mark Zuckerberg, the founder, and chief executive of social media giant Facebook, has come out to reveal that the company will be taking some much needed time to work out several kinks with Libra, its planned stablecoin project. 

Zuckerberg made his statement in an interview with Asian financial news medium Nikkei earlier today, showing restraint in the wake of the multiple scandals that have continued to dog the company over the past two years. 

Facebook’s negative sentiments have spilled over to Libra

He was certainly right. The company has dealt with several rounds of backlash over how it has handled the data of its users and how their privacy has been compromised in return. 

After a series of negotiations over fines, millions of dollars spent on lobbying, and the company’s stock-taking some brutal hits over the past few months, it would seem that Zuck is finally ready to take things one step at a time.

“In the last few years, there are a lot of important social issues that Facebook and the other big internet companies are really at the center of in society,” he said, while also acknowledging that the company has lagged in carrying out certain tasks to ensure that users’ privacy is guaranteed. 

The privacy issues have so far been the most significant hurdle facing the social media behemoth as it looks to enter the cryptocurrency space with Libra. 

Ever since the whitepaper for the asset was released back in June, it has drawn both praise and criticism from various corners of the industry. However, while only a few of the asset’s naysayers have pointed out issues with the asset and how it works, it is rather clear that the vast majority of people seem to have lost their faith in Facebook completely. Axiomatically, Libra inherited this lack of trust immediately. 

Of course, this isn’t to say that Facebook hasn’t done its bit to try to allay any fears David Marcus, the company’s Blockchain Lead and the head of its Calibra division, appeared before Congress in July, and while he did his best to perform damage control, it was clear that the negative sentiment about Facebook was just too significant. 

Trying something different

In the wake of all this, it seems that Zuckerberg will like for the company to take several steps back and do things the right way. 

When he was quizzed on what potential impacts this new approach could have on the asset’s anticipated 2020 launch date, Zuckerberg also seemed to be unconvinced that this initial launch date could be realized. 

He said,