Facebook, which has courted rumors over its planned entry into blockchain and payments for around a year, could launch its own token as soon as Q3 2019, anonymous sources told the publication.
The company began hiring for a dedicated blockchain team last year, under the auspices of David Marcus, himself a former president of PayPal.
Now, around 20% of the team’s 50 members come from the payments platform, a situation reminiscent of the so-called “PayPal Mafia” executive group of the early 2000s.
Known for its progress in the then nascent e-payments arena, the group included now famous entrepreneurs with a penchant for cryptocurrency — Elon Musk, Reid Hoffman and Peter Thiel.
As Cointelegraph reported, Facebook’s cryptocurrency debut will likely take the form of a stablecoin dubbed FB Coin.
According to sources last week, the company is in talks with Visa and MasterCard surrounding the venture, while it is seeking investments totalling $1 billion.
A further source told the media that Facebook had acquired the “Libra” trademark for the token, which will be pegged to the U.S. dollar and have a range of applications.
Sources from Facebook itself have declined to comment on the developments.
