Facebook to Develop Cryptocurrency for Whatsapp, Sources Say

Sources close to the situation have told Bloomberg that Facebook is developing plans for a stablecoin to be used on the messaging app ‘WhatsApp.’ A stablecoin is a cryptocurrency that has been designed with the intention to maintain a stable and reliable value.

(And by the way, Finance Magnates totally predicted this like, 8 months ago...)

The same sources have said that it will be quite some time before the cryptocurrency is available to WhatsApp users, as Facebook has yet to develop strategic plans for the coin’s release, including plans for how the coin would be stored.

The project’s first aim will reportedly be to focus on remittance markets in India. WhatsApp is reported to have more than 200 million users in India, and the country’s remittance market is said to be the largest in the world. More than $69 billion was estimated to have been sent home in the country last year alone.

Dear @arunjaitley

Facebook is developing its own cryptocurrency for whatsapp transfers. It’s a matter of time before large companies turn to crypto. As a country, it’ll be too late for India if we do nothing! Step 1: Please remove banking restriction#IndiaWantsCrypto ?? — Nischal (WazirX) ⚡️ (@NischalShetty) December 21, 2018

Facebook Takes the Plunge into Finances and Blockchain Blockchain Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Read this Term

The creation of the stablecoin will represent two long-anticipated moves by Facebook, both to take an official step into blockchain and the financial services arena. A move toward the financial sphere has been suspected ever since former PayPal president David Marcus was hired to operate the Facebook Messenger app in 2014.

In May of this year, Marcus was also named as the head of Facebook’s blockchain initiatives, which have remained largely under wraps. Finance Magnates reported earlier this year on the fact that Facebook had publicly posted a number of job openings for its blockchain group, which is now suspected to have roughly 40 employee members.

Time for a new challenge! After four amazing years leading Messenger, I'm going to setup a small group to explore how to best Leverage Leverage In financial trading, leverage is a loan supplied by a broker, which facilitates a trader in being able to control a relatively large amount of money with a significantly lesser initial investment. Leverage therefore allows traders to make a much greater return on investment compared to trading without any leverage. Traders seek to make a profit from movements in financial markets, such as stocks and currencies.Trading without any leverage would greatly diminish the potential rewards, so traders In financial trading, leverage is a loan supplied by a broker, which facilitates a trader in being able to control a relatively large amount of money with a significantly lesser initial investment. Leverage therefore allows traders to make a much greater return on investment compared to trading without any leverage. Traders seek to make a profit from movements in financial markets, such as stocks and currencies.Trading without any leverage would greatly diminish the potential rewards, so traders Read this Term Blockchain for Facebook. I will miss my fierce Messenger team, but I'm excited about the journey ahead. My full note: https://t.co/nBKAr7vyj9

— David Marcus (@davidmarcus) May 8, 2018

"Like many other companies, Facebook is exploring ways to leverage the power of blockchain technology," said a Facebook spokesman in a statement to Bloomberg. "This new small team is exploring many different applications. We don’t have anything further to share."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg first expressed his interest in blockchain in his 2018 mission statement, when he said that he wanted to explore the positive and negative aspects of blockchain and other kinds of distributed ledger technologies.