J.P. Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs have declined Facebook’s invitation to join Libra. The refusal comes amid worries that cryptocurrency could be used to violate money laundering and sanctions laws. The news was reported by AnnaMaria Andriotis, Peter Rudegair, and Liz Hoffman at The Wall Street Journal.
The tech giant planned on launching its Libra cryptocurrency by June 2020. The plans included including over two dozen cofounders and members of the Libra Association. However, these plans have been unraveling since the project was announced early this summer.
As of now, Facebook has declined to comment.
Lawmakers have had concerns about Facebook moving into the cryptocurrency world, especially after privacy snafus like the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Additionally, when Facebook cryptocurrency chief and former Paypal president David Marcus was questioned about the project by the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, he promised that Facebook will not launch Libra until regulators’ concerns were addressed.
In July, Rep. Maxine Waters and other lawmakers sent a letter to Facebook calling on the company to stop Libra implementation over “serious concerns” about the project. These criticisms also come amid worries that Facebook and other big tech companies are monopolies without sufficient competition.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is slated to testify before Congress about Libra on October 23.
