London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 17, 2025

Mastercard, Visa, eBay, Stripe drop out of Facebook's Libra project

Mastercard, Visa, eBay, Stripe drop out of Facebook's Libra project

Visa, Mastercard and other financial partners that signed on to help build and maintain the Libra payments network are reconsidering their involvement following a backlash from U.S. and European government officials. Wary of attracting regulatory scrutiny, executives of some of Libra’s backers have declined Facebook’s requests to publicly support the project.

Their reluctance has Facebook scrambling to keep Libra on track. Policy executives from Libra’s more than two dozen backers - a group called the Libra Association - have been summoned to a meeting in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, according to people familiar with the matter.

On Oct. 14, representatives from the companies are slated to meet in Geneva to review a charter for the Libra Association and appoint a board of directors

Major defections could imperil Libra, Facebook’s attempt to persuade consumers to swap their national currencies for a digital coin that could be used to pay for goods and services on the internet. Without a network of financial partners that could help transfer currencies into Libra and global retailers to accept it as a form of payment, Libra’s reach would be limited.

Libra Is A ‘Better Paypal,’ Not A Liberating Currency Like Bitcoin, ETH, XRP, And LTC


Facebook’s global currency, Libra, is ‘another’ payment system – ie, a better version of Paypal, but not a liberating currency like Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies.

That’s according to Alex Karasulu, CEO and founder of OptDyn.

“Libra, the blockchain, is a permissioned blockchain, which means that only authorized validators are allowed on the network,” he says. “Each of the 100 corporate members in the Libra Foundation act as transaction validators. It's a cartel from the beginning and that may present issues with both organizations outside of the Foundation and also won't fly well with diehard Bitcoiners and crypto-anarchist types.”

For true believers in the Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency community, Libra isn’t a currency that liberates transactions from the control of central bankers, the way Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies do.

Furthermore, Libra, the currency, is not a “safe haven” for investors concerned with the fluctuation in the value of sovereign fiat currencies because it's backed by a basket of sovereign fiat currencies, notes Karasulu. This means that Libra’s value can be influenced by central bankers.

Simply put, Libra lacks the “ethos” of blockchain, according to Karasulu.

“It's empty and soulless to most cryptocurrency enthusiasts but they’re sure to see traction because billions of users exist on Facebook and the platforms of the 100 members that will use it to transact.”

Meanwhile, Libra poses a threat to major cryptocurrencies, because “most of these users won’t notice the difference between a “real” liberating cryptocurrency versus Libra and will enter the cryptoverse for the first time through it,” he says.

Wayne Chen, CEO of Interlapse Technologies, sees Libra having an effect on major cryptocurrencies, too. “Regardless of the technical and derivative differences, the stability of Libra will have compounding effects to major cryptocurrencies simply from an industry wide association,” he says.

While the Libra cartel has issues with the cryptocurrency community, it has more issues with big banks and regulators. Like national security, investor protection, and liquidity concerns.

Then there’s Libra’s threat to break their monopoly on printing money, and to manipulate the economy to accommodate the interests of powerful elites.

That’s why Libra is “currently being put through the ringer for regulatory, compliance and scrutiny,” according to Chen. “With over 2 billion global users on Facebook, issuance of a new digital, global currency by a centralized corporation can seem overpowering.”

While the future of Libra is unclear, one thing is clear: Facebook’s currency will continue to draw intense criticism from both the cryptocurrency community, big governments, and banks.

Disclosure: I own shares of Paypal

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
×