Consumer protection groups ask Libra Association members to withdraw from Facebook crypto

Four consumer protection groups - Open Markets Institute, Public Citizen, Demand Progress Education Fund and Revolving Door Project - have urged the 27 founding members of the Libra Association to withdraw from the Facebook-led cryptocurrency project.

The groups wrote an open letter on Thursday to the members, which include Visa, MasterCard, PayPal and Uber, urging their non-participation in the project, saying the Libra cryptocurrency will have “significant competitive, political, financial, and social implications.”

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The project’s aims are “unclear,” and its leadership structure is “based on fear,” the groups said, adding:

“We understand that Facebook is a powerful company, and that it has in part generated a climate of fear with its market dominance. But if you collectively withdraw from the project, it will signal that the just-beginning era of digital money will be based on fair rules and democratic deliberation, and not intimidation by the powerful.” 

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Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.