At a Social Media Summit held at the White House yesterday, U.S. President Donald Trump slammed Bitcoin and Libra. There’s a little irony in his pushback against Facebook given the social network is the biggest social media outlet of all. Addressing the social media participants he said “Each of you is fulfilling a vital role in our nation – you are challenging the media gatekeepers and the corporate censors to bring the facts straight to the American People.”
And he tweeted:
I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air. Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019
…and International. We have only one real currency in the USA, and it is stronger than ever, both dependable and reliable. It is by far the most dominant currency anywhere in the World, and it will always stay that way. It is called the United States Dollar!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019
In the U.S. Congress the Financial Services Committee has been particularly negative about Libra asking Facebook to halt. Facebook Calibra CEO David Marcus has responded in writing.
Other central banks and regulators have aired their views on Libra, most recently the Monetary Authority of Singapore. They include central bank The People’s Bank of China, The Bank of England, the U.K. financial regulator, the Governor of the Bank of France Villeroy de Galhau, and leading Chinese economist Zhu Min who have all made statements.
