The Libra Association announces the adoption of a new name for Facebook’s stablecoin project, „Diem“. The initiative goes further than a simple name change, the team wishing to emphasize to regulators the independence of the project.
Libra becomes Diem
In a press release issued today, the Libra Association has announced that it has changed its name to the Diem Association . The underlying Libra project is also renamed to Diem .
This modification testifies to the desire of the former Libra Association to detach itself from the image of Facebook . After many setbacks with regulators around the world, the Bitcoin Billionaire project hopes to mark its independence.
In addition, the project has been reshaped many times, in its form, its ambitions and even its management team. The Association believes that its new vision for the project no longer corresponded to the old one , hence this desire to change its name.
“The original name was linked to a first iteration of the project which received a difficult reception from regulators. We have radically changed this proposition, ”said Stuart Levey, CEO of Association Diem.
Diem, which means „day“ in Latin, is now aiming to launch a dolla r- backed stablecoin . The project is still awaiting approval from FINMA, the regulator of financial markets in Switzerland.
This limited version of the ex-Libra could see the light of day in January 2021, depending on the regulator’s responses.
Mark your independence from Facebook
With Diem, the eponymous association aims to distinguish itself by focusing on aspects of concern to regulators, namely financial crime and the control of sanctions.
In addition, regulators have had the Facebook project in their sights since its inception. They are worried about what such a stablecoin could become , especially since it would be under the tutelage of such a powerful company.
The replacement of Libra by Diem is therefore not as trivial as it seems, and truly marks the Association’s desire to move forward:
“We’re not trying to cut all ties, far from it. It (the name change) must mean that the association operates autonomously and independently, ”added Stuart Levey.
Will this change be enough to convince more regulators? This is unlikely. Nevertheless, the Diem Association hopes to emerge from the shadow of Facebook, and gradually dissociate itself from the actions of the Internet giant.
Changing the name of the Libra project probably only displaces the problem. For regulators already familiar with Facebook’s plan, it will be difficult for them to dissociate Diem from Mark Zuckerberg’s empire .