Katharina Pistor shares her views on Facebook’s Libra
|- Pistor says Libra is designed to become a new global currency that will complement fiat.
- Libra could be a lot cheaper and better for customers says Pistor.
During the Libra hearings in Washington DC, Legal expert Katharina Pistor said, "You can’t put the genie back into the bottle." Pistor, the Edwin B. Parker Professor of Comparative Law at Columbia Law School, explored the legality and the significance of corporate tokens like Libra in a world that seems inhibited towards it.
On July 17, at the House Financial Services Committee, Pistor said:
"Facebook’s Libra is designed to become a new global currency that will complement existing fiat currencies. It is designed as a for-profit currency of currencies." Later, she went on to describe Libra as a “concentration of power… unmatched by any meaningful accountability to anyone.”
Pistor stated that Libra could only be possible because of the regulatory infrastructure that already supports fiat currency. Similar to how treasury bills and bank deposits are guarded by the reputation and "full faith of the United States behind them," Libra would be ingratiated in the financial ecosystem.
She feels that because of Libra's streamlined and "elegant" design, it "could eliminate a lot of things. It could be a lot cheaper. It could just be a much better system for many customers.” Ultimately, Pistor wants to know “whether the central banks could actually offer something that’s more attractive?” She concluded, “I think the really important question is what is the benefit of doing it through a private agent rather than a public agent."
Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers.