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After huge hype, deliberation, and excitement around Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency project, Libra, it may never come to fruition. Facebook has come out and admitted that due to a number of factors, there is a chance Libra will be late to launch, or may never launch at all.

Since the announcement was made public, Facebook has faced a huge amount of backlash from its proposed idea to launch what is essentially its own currency. Banks, governments, and the US senate in particular have struck back at Facebook.

All the while, the social media giant has said it will only launch if it manages to get full regulatory backing for its project - but that may not be entirely possible. 

Big barriers

In the firm’s latest quarterly report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Facebook was open and direct with its concerns about launching Libra, citing the regulator barriers it has faced since the announcement. 

“there can be no assurance that Libra or our associated products and services will be made available in a timely manner, or at all,” said the report.

Libra’s issue is that, like a decentralised cryptocurrency, it operates globally and thus is subject to a myriad of financial laws and regulations. In India, it has already stated it will not launch, but in the parent company’s nation of the US, it is facing some of the biggest barriers. 

“Our participation in the Libra Association will subject us to significant regulatory scrutiny and other risks that could adversely affect our business, reputation, or financial results,” Facebook added.

And not only is Libra “based on relatively new and unproven technology,” the laws and regulations around digital currency are “uncertain and evolving.”

A balancing act

The concerns are that if Libra is not allowed to launch, there could be a big blockching of innovation and progress. And it is not only Facebook and cryptocurrency enthusiasts that believer this. 

In the debate about the merits of Libra, some, like India and the US have been strongly opposed while the likes of Japan and a few other G7 nations have seen its value. 

If Libra is to be sunk by regulations it would most likely set a precedent of sterner and stifling regulations. This has already seen Ripple CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, come out and plea to Congress to “not paint all crypto projects with the same brush.”

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