Preston Byrne & Jake Chervinsky on Regulating Libra

Mr Obnoxious - A podcast by Peter McCormack

Categorie:

Location: New York
Date: Thursday, 25th July
Project: Byrne & Storm and Compound Finance
Role: Partner & General Counsel

Shortly after Facebook announced the launch of Libra, the U.S government hauled David Marcus, the head of the proposed currency, in front of Congress. For two days, Marcus answered tough questioning from both The House and The Senate on everything from Libra’s intentions to Facebook’s previous issues such as Cambridge Analytica.

Quite predictably, the creation of a new global currency was seen as a threat to the Dollar and was met with hostility by large parts of Congress, but was this part of Facebook’s plan? Are they using and audacious initial proposal as a way of shocking Congress before ‘revisiting’ the proposal and easing the regulatory path?

Or, is Facebook using cryptocurrency and blockchain under the guise of ‘innovation’ as a shield against harsh regulation, well aware of the government’s fear that China controlled WeChat and Alipay could weaken the position of the Dollar?

Why is Facebook launching this project? With Facebook, active users dropping rapidly has the novelty of the social network worn off and is this just a pivot to stay relevant and maintain control? For the next episode in my Libra Deep Dive I talk to Preston Byrne & Jake Chervinsky about the regulatory side of Libra. We discuss whether Libra is a security, if the Foundation is really a non-profit and whether Libra is even a cryptocurrency.

-----

Connect with Jake:
- On Twitter @jchervinsky
- On LinkedIn

Connect with Preston:
- On Twitter @prestonjbyrne
- His Website

Mentioned in the interview:
- Libra
- Libra Whitepaper
- Cambridge Analytica
- Donald Trump’s Libra Tweet
- Libra Association Founding Members
- Investment Company Act of 1940
- Securities Exchange Commission

Other relevant WBD podcasts:
- WBD144: Jameson Lopp & Peter Todd on Libra: Technical Analysis
- WBD143: Bill Barhydt on Libra: The Dawn of Corporate Money
- WBD120: Brian Quintenz on How the CFTC Regulates Cryptocurrencies
- WBD118: Caitlin Long on Why Facebook's Libra Coin is Good for Bitcoin
- WBD035: The SEC, ETFs, XRP and Crypto Regulations with Jake Chervinsky

-----

If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show my doing the following:

Become a Patron and get access to shows early or help contribute

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family

Subscribe to the newsletter on my website

Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium | YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Visit the podcast's native language site