US Lawmakers Visit Switzerland To Talk Libra

During an upcoming visit to Switzerland, American lawmakers plan to discuss Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency, Libra.

A group of six lawmakers, led by Rep. Maxine Waters, will hold a meeting with the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) Adrian Lobsiger, according to Bloomberg.

Waters has been a vocal critic of the social media giant’s plans for its own digital currency. Last month she — along with Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Lacy Clay, Al Green and Stephen Lynch — who wrote a letter calling for Facebook to stop its plans, citing risks to security, financial stability and the control the U.S. government has over monetary policy.

“It appears that these products may lend themselves to an entirely new global financial system that is based out of Switzerland and intended to rival U.S. monetary policy and the dollar,” the letter stated. “This raises serious privacy, trading, national security and monetary policy concerns for not only Facebook’s over 2 billion users, but also for investors, consumers, and the broader global economy.”

Soon after, the U.S. Senate grilled David Marcus, Facebook’s head of blockchain projects, on Libra. He confirmed Facebook’s commitment that it would not look to bring Libra online in the U.S. without regulatory support. He also said the Libra Association is headquartered in Switzerland “not to evade any responsibilities of oversight” but because it is the hub for international financial groups like the Bank for International Settlements. He said Libra’s associated Calibra wallet plans will be regulated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

Meanwhile, the FDPIC said last month that he still hadn’t heard from Facebook regarding its supposed oversight of Libra.

“The Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner has noted the remarks made by Mr. David Marcus at his hearing before a U.S. Senate committee,” the FDPIC said in a statement. “The FDPIC stated in his letter that as he had not received any indication on what personal data may be processed, the Libra Association should inform him of the current status of the project so that he could assess the extent to which his advisory competences and supervisory powers would apply.”