- Pegging the Stablecoin to USD will help minimize volatility
- Facebook to focus first on the remittances market in India
- The release of the coin is not imminent
Facebook may develop a cryptocurrency that’s specifically designed to facilitate money transfers using its WhatsApp encrypted mobile messaging application. The initial focus of the dollar-pegged Stablecoin will be remittances within the Indian market.
Facebook Delves into the Stablecoin Fervor
A report appearing in Bloomberg dated December 21, 2018, states that the new cryptocurrency will be a US dollar pegged Stablecoin to manage volatility. People familiar with the matter told the publication that the focus will be the Indian market.
According to the report, the issue is still in its early development stage and is therefore not about to be released anytime soon since the company is still working on getting the right strategy. The company, the report adds, is looking for a strategic approach to custody that will enable them to securely hold its users’ fiat currencies.
WhatsApp is an extremely popular messaging service of the social media giant Facebook and is said to have over 200 million users in India. The Asian country leads the rest of the world in matters to do with remittances with Indians living abroad sending over $69 billion in 2017 alone. This appears to have been the motivation behind Facebook’s choice for India to pilot its entry into the world of cryptocurrencies. A Facebook company spokesperson told Bloomberg in statement:
“Like many other companies, Facebook is exploring ways to leverage the power of the blockchain technology; […] this new small team is exploring many applications. We don’t have anything further to share.”
Earlier this year Facebook revealed it had created an experimental blockchain group that would be under the guardianship the man formerly in charge of the social media giant’s Messenger Group David Marcus. Since that announcement in May 2018, the company is said to have been quietly staffing the blockchain group and is now reported to have at list five different listings that include blockchain scientists, engineers, and product marketing experts.
This year has seen an upsurge of cryptocurrency projects especially related to Stablecoin, with over 120 ventures related to Stablecoins being afloat at one point in time. The concept intends to create a cryptocurrency that easier to use for routine purchases and which should be more stable than regular cryptocurrencies.
With its population of over 2.5 billion users globally and over $40 billion in annual revenues and a higher experience navigating several regulatory issues, Facebook may have a better chance in creating a Stablecoin that will survive. It will become the first tech giant to launch a crypto project, as it struggles to clear its name regarding data privacy scandals.
