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Facebook (FB) Is Working on a Stablecoin for WhatsApp Transfers

source-logo  sludgefeed.com 21 December 2018 06:30, UTC

Facebook (FB) is reportedly developing a cryptocurrency designed specifically for money transfers on its WhatsApp encrypted mobile-messaging app.

According to a breaking report by Bloomberg, the new cryptocurrency will be a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar, in order to reduce volatility. The first focus will be the remittance market in India, according to people familiar with the matter.

The report indicates that the new Facebook coin won’t be released anytime soon, as the company is still refining its strategy. The company is specifically looking at best approaches to custody, in order to securely hold users’ fiat currencies.

WhatsApp is highly popular in India, with more than 200 million users. Add to that the fact that India leads the world in remittances, with more than $69 billion sent home to India in 2017, and it becomes obvious why Facebook chose it as the first location to test the new stablecoin integration.

“Like many other companies, Facebook is exploring ways to leverage the power of blockchain technology,” a company spokesman said in a statement given to Bloomberg. “This new small team is exploring many different applications. We don’t have anything further to share.”

Facebook initially revealed last May that its experimental blockchain group would be led by David Marcus, the executive formerly in charge of Facebook’s Messenger group.

Since that time, the company has been quietly staffing up the new group and now has five different listings for blockchain scientists, engineers and product marketing experts.

sludgefeed.com