Meta is shutting down its crypto wallet Novi on Sep. 1st.
This shouldnโt be surprising after its crypto ambition evaporated.
Here is a recap of Meta(Facebook)โs 3-year journey in crypto payment.
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Jun โ19: Facebook announced the details of the planned global coin Libra.
This supposedly mission-driven project immediately generated huge fanfare globally. However, it was ill-advised and doomed from the very beginning.
With the global reach and a multi-currency reserve, Libra could impact a countryโs money supply. No central bank would give up control of legal tender to a private company.
Even without the outright ban, regulators sent clear messages. Large payment companies such as VISA/MasterCard/PayPal quickly backed out of the Libra project - Facebook needed these so-called founding partners to recognize its new digital currency.
Oct โ19: Libra Association was inaugurated anyway in Switzerland, under a huge cloud of doubt.
๐ ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ๐๐-๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐จ๐ข๐ง
Libraโs application for a paid license from the Swiss authority met with intensive and lengthy scrutiny, including feedback from more than two dozen regulatory authorities around the world.
Dec โ20: Libra was rebranded to Diem in order to show โorganizational independenceโ.
May โ21: Diem was downgraded from a global coin to a USD stablecoin.
Diem gave up the pending payment license application in Switzerland and moved its operational headquarter from Geneva to Washington, D.C.
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Even with the scaled-down stablecoin, Facebook could not shake off its bad image.
Given its infamous history, both regulators and consumers are rightfully wary about the big techโs entry into peopleโs daily financial lives.
Oct โ21: recognizing the image problem from the past, Facebook rebranded itself as Meta.
Despite the scope scaleback and rebranding, it became clear over time the US regulators would not give the green light to Diem.
Jan โ22: Meta abanded the Diem initiative. Diem was sold to its partner bank in California, Silvergate.
Jul โ22: Meta announced the demise of the crypto wallet Novi. It has been 3 years since the initial Libra announcement.
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What can be learned from Meta/Facebookโs experience? Probably quite a few.
One particular came to mind:
๐ฉ ๐๐ฆ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฏ๐ช๐ค๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐บ, ๐ฆ๐ท๐ฆ๐ณ๐บ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ช๐ด ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฃ๐ญ๐ฆ. ๐๐ถ๐ต, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฏโ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐ฐ ๐ช๐ต.
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