
With cryptocurrency, Facebook sets path toward becoming an independent nation - pseudolus
https://theconversation.com/with-cryptocurrency-launch-facebook-sets-its-path-toward-becoming-an-independent-nation-118987
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mimixco
They keep saying this is a "stablecoin" but there is no way it can be stable.
First, the basket of currencies in the reserve is chosen by Facebook and will
fluctuate against the value of the Libra as Facebook (or the verifier nodes,
other tech giants) decide.

Secondly, it's a _fractional reserve_ with only 10% of the floating Libra
expected to be held in reserve currencies. That amount could also change
anytime and definitely will change as this concept is the basis of modern
banking.

Third, not all of the reserve has to be in fiat. FB will have some of it in
other financial instruments and these, too, will vary over time, so says the
documentation. This is another staple of the banking industry.

In other words, your Libra is only worth what FB says it is worth today in
trade for some other currency. Those exchange amounts can and will change from
country to country, from user to user (never possible before; the ultimate in
demand pricing), and fiat to fiat. This gives FB an unprecedented role as an
arbiter of global exchange rates and an arbitrageur who profits from a spread
that they themselves create.

FB doesn't care about being a nation because, as one of the Rockefellers
supposedly said, it matters not who makes the laws if you can control the
supply of money. FB's policy documents already divulge that they will control
the supply and value of Libra.

