Facebook's Libra Will Put Sovereignty At Risk, Says France

It appears Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency will have to deal with more hurdles than initially expected.

Previously, U.S Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, claimed that cryptocurrencies such as Libra pose a “national security risk” and has the potential of becoming a hub of illegal activities.

Now, French Finance Minister, Bruno Le Maire, has said that Libra cryptocurrency would put the sovereignty of governments at risk. Therefore, it cannot be allowed on the “European soil.”

“All these concerns around libra are serious. So I want to say this with a lot of clarity: In these conditions, we cannot authorize the development of libra,” said Le Maire at the OECD conference in Paris, on Thursday.

Le Maire has been quite vocal about his strong opinions on Libra since Facebook announced it back in June. Previously, Maire said that the country wouldn’t allow Libra until it hasn’t been regulated with few ground rules.

On the contrary, Facebook has argued that the controlling power will be upon the hands of Libra association. Based in Switzerland, the association is formed of 27 members, including Facebook, PayPal, Visa, Mastercard, and other companies.

On the comments of Le Maire, Libra Association’s Head of Policy, Dante Disparte said, “The Libra Association and its members are committed to working with regulatory authorities to achieve a safe, transparent, and consumer-focused implementation ”

He also said that Facebook’s Libra project has become one of the “world’s most scrutinized fintech effort.”

Indeed it is! Now with France thinking of blocking Libra in the country would be a massive blow to the tech giant and its goal of “easy money transfer” across the world.