Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Executive Officer of Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB), who appeared before the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC), is under intense pressure on various issues. The chairwoman of HFSC, Rep Maxine Waters, said Facebook and its CEO are acting as if they are above the law.
Californian Democrat tells Facebook to stop Libra launch
The Californian Democrat has demanded Facebook to immediately stop the work on Libra, the new single currency, and think about it after fixing all the issues. According to the democrat, Facebook is a platform for interference in the elections and allows ads of politicians that propagate wrong or misinformation. But, Mark replied, should we go China way or the US way.
Libra maintains financial leadership of the US
Mark said Libra is a necessity to maintain the leadership of the US in the world. He always refers to China during a debate. According to Mark, any delay in the launch of Libra would make the US lose its leadership to China. He said China is coming up with a new idea soon.
Mark told the congress that the launch of Libra would maintain the financial leadership of the US across the world apart from safeguarding democratic values. According to the CEO of Facebook, innovation is vital for ensuring financial leadership.
The single currency helps those people without any bank accounts to send the money across the borders, just like sending a simple text message. It is the brainchild of Facebook, but it has the backing of 27 partners that comprise financial services companies. However, several founding partners that include Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, and Paypal have left the organization because they work under strict regulations. Their departure casts doubt on the progress of the Libra project. Mark said he would launch the Libra anywhere in the world only after approval of the US regulators.
Facebook faces a federal lawsuit
The department of housing and urban development has filed a federal lawsuit against Facebook for discrimination in the ads. Facebook allowed advertisers to post ads with a mechanism to reach the targeted audience only. According to the complaint, Facebook discriminates people based on where they live and who they are. Therefore, it violates the fair housing act. Facebook allows untrue information on its platform. Its motive is only profit.
