Facebook’s Head Of Blockchain Expects Libra To Be Governed By Swiss Law

Facebook’s Head Of Blockchain announced that he expects the new crypto project to be governed by Swiss law since the European country is known for its friendly attitude towards crypto as we previously mentioned in the altcoin news.

David Marcus, Facebook’s head of blockchain who has been a major enthusiast over the years, stated:

 “Because the (Libra) Association is headquartered in Geneva, it will be supervised by the Swiss Financial Markets Supervisory Authority (FINMA). We have had preliminary discussions with FINMA and expect to engage with them on an appropriate regulatory framework for the Libra Association.”

Marcus also explained that the association wants to register with the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network but it is still unclear why does Libra want to settle in Switzerland and not in the United States. The Laws in both countries have similarities. They both allow digital currencies and exchanges, they try to protect the citizens from extortion, money laundering or any kind of illicit activity, they both use their financial legislature to cover the digital currencies and are still trying to determine what exactly is the best regulation for this sector.

One of the main differences between the countries is the attitude they have towards crypto. The United States is always looking at crypto with caution while Switzerland has always been welcoming and open. The Federal Assembly which is the legislative branch of the Swiss government voted in favor of the motion to be guided on the application of current laws towards crypto. Also, the country decided to regulate digital currencies within the framework of their existing laws so they do not have special laws for crypto and ICOs. They chose to be flexible and to govern the different types of currencies depending on each case.

On the contrary, in the United States, the small business owners, corporations and legislators have been calling for clarity on crypto regulation for many years. In the meantime, President Donald Trump has shared his opinion that he does not find bitcoin as an asset that you should invest in. the US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke at the press conference which we reported about in the latest cryptocurrency news saying:

“Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin have been exploited to support billions of dollars of illicit activity, like cybercrime, tax evasion, extortion, ransomware, illicit drugs, human trafficking … This is indeed a national security issue. I think to a large extent, these cryptocurrencies have been dominated by illicit activities and speculation.”