Rumours have surfaced this week suggesting that social media giant Facebook is on the prowl for $1 billion in funding to develop its Facebook stablecoin.
Stablecoins offer cryptocurrency users the best of both worlds, providing instant processing and security of payments whilst being volatility-free valuations of fiat currencies. They were initially created by exchanges in order to provide investors with a stable currency to use as a placeholder to store value between trades.
It has recently been reported that Facebook is talking to cryptocurrency exchanges about the possibility of listing its own cryptocurrency.
Now, Nathaniel Popper of the New York Times has released a series of tweets outlining that Facebook may be on the lookout for funding for the Facebook Coin.
The first tweet reads: “Sources tell me Facebook is now looking to get VC (venture capital) firms to invest in the Facebook cryptocurrency project. I hear they are targeting big sums – as much as $1b.”
Update on Facebook's cryptocurrency: Sources tell me that Facebook is now looking to get VC firms to invest in the Facebook cryptocurrency project we reported on earlier this year. I hear they are targeting big sums — as much as $1b.
— Nathaniel Popper (@nathanielpopper) April 8, 2019
Popper speculates that Facebook may be exploring external funding options because: “Given that one of the big allures of blockchain projects is the decentralisation, getting outside investors could help Facebook present the project as more decentralised and less controlled by Facebook.”
Given that one of the big allures of blockchain projects is the decentralization, getting outside investors could help Facebook present the project as more decentralized and less controlled by Facebook.
— Nathaniel Popper (@nathanielpopper) April 8, 2019
He then proceeds to outline how he spoke with one individual who informed him that Facebook may be raising capital as collateral for its stablecoin.
One person I spoke with said that Facebook is talking about using the money as collateral for its cryptocurrency. Facebook has been designing the coin to keep a stable value, pegged to a basket of foreign currencies held in bank accounts.
— Nathaniel Popper (@nathanielpopper) April 8, 2019
Regardless of opinions on Facebook as a whole and the issue of centralisation, a huge global entity such as Facebook showing interest in crypto should help bring wider awareness to the crypto space.
Interested in reading more Facebook and cryptocurrency-related news? Discover more about the rumours of the Facebook stablecoin and how it could affect the crypto and blockchain industry.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author should not be considered as financial advice. We do not give advice on financial products.