Haruhiko Kuroda, the Bank of Japan (BoJ) governor, on Tuesday, spoke out against Facebook’s digital currency, urging the cooperation of international regulators in regulating stablecoins like Libra, Reuters reported.
While speaking to the business leaders in Osaka, Kuroda said: “If Libra is introduced, it could have a huge impact on society.”
He also pointed out that policymakers should apply the highest level of regulations to such stablecoins.
The BoJ governor’s stance on Libra echoes the view of the Swiss market regulator’s approach to regulate the digital currency. Commenting on Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority’s (FINMA) plan, Mark Branson, head of the regulatory body, clarified that the agency can only scrutinize the project for its anti-money laundering compliance and “a project of such a global dimension can be addressed only via international coordination and consultation with other supervisors and regulators.”
“It is illusory to believe a single country can regulate and oversee a project like Libra on its own. The supervision of UBS or Credit Suisse also does not take place in complete isolation,” Branson added.
Facebook is seeking a payment system license from FINMA to operate Libra under Swiss laws.
Highest regulatory standards should be met
Moreover, apart from Kuroda, multiple lawmakers and regulatory bodies sought the highest standards of regulations to oversee Libra. Earlier this year, Bank of England governor Mark Carney said he is keeping an “open mind” for Libra, but warned it might face strict Regulation if it takes off.
“Anything that works in this world will become instantly systemic and will have to be subject to the highest standards of regulation,” Carney stated.
Meanwhile, France's Finance Minister recently revealed that the country would block Facebook’s attempt to launch Libra in the European markets. Germany also passed a Blockchain strategy recently to push back the establishment of any parallel currency by any corporation.
