Singapore’s central bank has met with Facebook about its upcoming Libra cryptocurrency. This is according to Bloomberg.
The managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Ravi Menon, reportedly acknowledged libra’s potential benefits which includes making payments cheaper or supporting the unbanked. He however said the regulator needs to understand exactly how the tech giant’s system will work.
Menon said Singapore would be seeking assurances on security and privacy issues before making a regulatory decision. He said:
“The key challenge is to figure out the nature of the beast. What is it more like and which box we can put it into. At this point we are not sure yet.”
Menon also warned that the concerns raised by central banks worldwide are important. Facebook has been receiving some considerable pushback from regulators since unveiling the white paper for its long-awaited cryptocurrency.
Governor Villeroy de Galhau of Bank of France warned that libra will have to comply with banking regulations in the country before it can operate.
United States House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing about libra come July 16th.