eBay, MasterCard, Visa, Others Officially Withdraw From Facebook’s Libra

In a statement shared earlier today, eBay said it was withdrawing from this initiative to devote itself full-time to developing payment solutions within its platform. The Financial Times published a statement shared by a spokesperson:

“We highly respect the vision of the Libra Association; however, eBay has made the decision to not move forward as a founding member. At this time, we are focused on rolling out eBay’s managed payments experience for our customers.”

eBay was one of the first members to support the initiative.

Stripe, Visa, MasterCard Also Say Goodbye

At the same time, online payment processing company Stripe also announced it was cutting ties with the Libra Association, albeit not ruling out the idea of getting involved again in the future if development is more favorable.

“Stripe is supportive of projects that aim to make online commerce more accessible for people around the world. Libra has this potential. We will follow its progress closely and remain open to working with the Libra Association at a later stage.”

These three losses sharply weakened this corporate association that had been struggling with criticism from enthusiasts, experts, and regulators around the world. Initially, there were 28 startups behind Libra’s development, although they assured that the number would grow to close to 100 members as the year passed.

Visa and MasterCard just withdrew from the Libra Association.

The political pressure is too hard for corporations to deal with.

Bitcoin’s decentralized, leaderless model is the only way a non-sovereign, global digital currency can be successful.

— Pomp 🌪 (@APompliano) October 11, 2019

Shortly after this news, popular Twitter influencer in the cryptocurrency space, @APompliano, shared that Visa and MasterCard have withdrawn from the project as well. This shouldn’t be a complete surprise, considering these companies were already thinking about distancing themselves. Mercado Pago also announced shortly afterward that it is leaving, too.

The Libra Association is Going Through Hard Times

Of all the payment processors that were part of the Libra Association, PayPal, Visa, and MasterCard were three of the most notable. But the statements of Mr. Alfred Kelly —Visa Chairman and CEO— clarifying that “no one has yet officially joined (Libra)” marked another hard blow to the credibility of the project, especially considering that Kelly himself conditioned Visa’s entry to “the ability of the association to satisfy all the requisite regulatory requirements.” These announcements happen just days after news spread that regulators were interested in meeting with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to talk about Libra and discuss the Association’s motives, as BeInCrypto previously reported. Until now, it was David Marcus, as head of the project, the one responsible for answering these requirements. So far, there has not been any official reaction from Facebook. The Libra Association has scheduled a meeting to nominate the board of the project next week. What do you think about another set of companies leaving Libra? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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