The promise to be found in Facebook’s Libra

[webfact]

The promise to be found in Facebook’s Libra

By The Nation

 

 

If it is not to be left behind, Thailand should take note of ground-shaking developments like this
 

Facebook has unveiled plans to launch a new cryptocurrency called Libra, seeking to expand the world’s largest social-media platform into a much bigger ecosystem that, if it had its way, will roil global financial waves in a big way.

 

With more than two billion users worldwide, including about 50 million in Thailand, Facebook said it would develop the digital currency as a pivotal part of its current sharing platforms to offer its users a new medium for managing their income and spending. With Libra stored on personal digital wallets tied to the social network, traditional currencies such as the dollar, euro and baht will face a new challenge as they navigate the rapid growth of the digital economy and digital society.

 

According to Facebook, its mission is to tap the estimated 1.7 billion people around the world who still have no traditional bank accounts or access to modern financial services, and yet they account for 31 per cent of the world population. Libra in intended to serve them. They can use the digital unit as medium of exchange for goods and services as well as for cross-border money transfers. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will also benefit from the new currency, especially in terms of obtaining credit on Facebook.

 

Facebook is also in the process of setting up Calibra as a subsidiary to run the digital-currency operation. For security purposes, it would ensure that users’ financial data is kept wholly separate from other personal data lodged with Facebook’s social-media platforms. To avoid wild pricing fluctuations, as has been the case with Bitcoin, Libra will be backed by real assets, such as bank deposits and government bonds, as well as equity stakes put down by Facebook and its partners to serve as the currency’s reserves.

 

At least 27 entities, among them Mastercard, Paypal, Uber and Spotify, have agreed to participate in the Libra programme, which can be used to pay for a wide range of goods and services which in the future could challenge the relevance of traditional currencies.

 

Underpinning Libra and other cryptocurrencies is the distributed ledger technology known as blockchain, whose applications are diverse and promise to reform the economy and society in a major way. In this context, Thailand should not miss the technology bandwagon. The new government needs to focus on developing human assets, especially for blockchain developers.

 

At present, several Southeast Asian countries have made headway on blockchain and on other related technology fronts. Vietnam in particular has built up formidable manpower in technology, including for blockchain developers. Thailand’s domestic shortage has led to the need for imported IT workers, especially blockchain developers from Vietnam.

 

Hence, the new government needs to pursue the next stage of the “Thailand 4.0” initiative with a human-capital focus to ensure that the country is not a net importer of skilled workers for the digital age, but a thriving platform for digital skill development and re-training platforms. Successful structural changes and digital transformation will figure prominently as the country’s KPI (key performance indicators) over the next decade, as increasingly evidenced by Facebook and the like.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30371501

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-06-21

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info

[RichardColeman]

Not sure it will effect the cash in hand agents

[Pedrogaz]

I would want someone much more trustworthy than Zuckerberg running anything I am going to invest in, especially something as flaky as cryptocurrency. Zuckerberg presides over a business empire that spies on people without their knowledge and sells their data to other businesses. A pernicious evil. 

 

[Bluespunk]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Facebook has unveiled plans to launch a new cryptocurrency

I believe zuckerberg’s monster prefers  not to use the term cryptocurrency. 

Edited June 21, 2019 by Bluespunk

[yokat]

How is this in Thailand's news ? Facebook made it's own private currency based on blockchain. Any tech news can become "Thailand news" if we just have to say that Thailand wants to keep up.

[DLock]

17 minutes ago, yokat said:

How is this in Thailand's news ? Facebook made it's own private currency based on blockchain. Any tech news can become "Thailand news" if we just have to say that Thailand wants to keep up.

Facebook is global. Thailand is a huge user and this currency will be relevant to Thailand users.

 

You would prefer to have no knowledge of this?

[connda]

In Zuck We Trust  <laughs> ????

[404error]

Why support this coin when you know who's behind this. Not just talking about Facebook, but Visa Mastercard etc .. Thugs who do everything to control you and me. There are many similar altcoins that will do the same without having banks or big companies controling you.

The funny thing is that Facebook previously refused to let others advertise with crypto currency and now they try themselves. Never trust Facebook or people behind the banks..

Edited June 21, 2019 by 404error

[RickTik]

Beware, my friends.

Yes, I do use Facebook.

It is a place to get pieces of information.  

However, they are not our friends.

Avoid getting involved with them financially.

[DrTuner]

On 6/21/2019 at 10:35 AM, Pedrogaz said:

I would want someone much more trustworthy than Zuckerberg running anything I am going to invest in, especially something as flaky as cryptocurrency. Zuckerberg presides over a business empire that spies on people without their knowledge and sells their data to other businesses. A pernicious evil. 

Yes, this is facebook's ploy to regain access to using you as their money maker: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/20/opinion/facebook-libra-cryptocurrency.html

 

Bitcoin has no such problems.