G7 tells Facebook to defer Libra launch

Sebi said it will auction nearly 200 properties of Sai Prasad Group firms and three of its directors next month in order to recover funds worth thousands of crores raised by the entity through illicit collective investment schemes. Sebi has been auctioning properties and their directors for the past two years. Besides, it had put up on sale, jewellery, ornaments and other valuables of Sai Prasad Group. Washington, Oct. 18: Facebook should not launch its global digital currency Libra until proper regulations are in place to handle the potential risks, the Group of Seven said Thursday.

And France’s Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire warned that a currency like Libra could undermine sovereign nations’ control over their exchange rates.

“It’s a matter of democracy, not just a simple economic question,” Le Maire told reporters, saying Facebook’s currency could have an “immediate global reach” through the social network’s huge membership.

Le Maire presented the Group of Seven nation’s statement on Libra, saying “no global stablecoin project should begin operation until the legal, regulatory and oversight challenges and risks are adequately addressed,” including the potential for money laundering and terror financing.

But, he told reporters, “The key question is the question of sovereignty.” “Do we want a private company to have... the same power, and the same sovereignty, as democratic states” over currencies.

Libra, which would be backed by reserve assets unlike cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, has faced a steady drumbeat of stern warnings from central bankers and financial regulators.

European Central Bank board member Benoit Coeure presented a report on digital currencies to the G7 finance ministers, who are gathering on the margins of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

The report said a framework for oversight of Libra “is an absolute prerequisite,” and urged regulators to coordinate their work to prevent issuers from seeking out the most favorable country from which to operate.

If it enters circulation, Libra would offer an alternative to traditional bank financial transfers, a disruptive change that has aroused resistance and skepticism.

Facebook’s digital currency chief David Marcus told reporters in Washington that the issues raised by Le Maire are “legitimate concerns.” “We’re determined to answer these concerns with real solutions that will meet or exceed the standards of the current system,” he told a small group of reporters at an event in Washington.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s co-founder and Chief Executive, was in Washington as well Thursday, and is due to testify before the US Congress next week on the social media network’s impact on financial services.

The Libra Association, which will oversee Facebook’s proposed currency and officially launched Monday in Geneva, also said in a statement that Libra “is being designed to respect national sovereignty over monetary policy in the digital space, not undermine it.” But central bankers remain concerned about the prospects.

Lael Brainard, an influential member of the US Federal Reserve board, said Facebook’s proposed currency presented a host of risks and regulatory challenges for preventing money-laundering and assuring financial stability, and could be a challenge to the traditional role played by banks.

“There are likely to be financial stability risks for a stablecoin network with global reach,” she said in a speech Wednesday. “If not managed effectively, liquidity, credit, market, or operational risks — alone or in combination — could trigger a loss of confidence and a classic run.”

China, which is not a G7 member and decided two years ago to block cryptocurrency transactions, has recently sped up plans to introduce its own digital money.

Libra also has faced challenges from within after major financial and commercial players in recent weeks have backed out of the project, including Visa, Mastercard, eBay, Stripe, PayPal and the online travel firm Bookings Holdings.

The 21 founding members include the online payments company PayU, the telecoms firms Vodafone and Iliad, as well as tech outfits Uber, Spotify and Farfetch, blockchain operations such as Anchorage, Xapo and Coinbase and the venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz, Ribbit Capital and non-profits Kiva and Mercy Corps. New Delhi, Oct. 18: Reliance Jio was the only net gainer adding 84.45 lakh subscribers in August, while other telecom operators including Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea were on the losing side, a report by regulator Trai showed on Friday.

“The number of telephone subscribers in India increased from

1,189.28 million at the end of July 2019 to 1,191.81 million at the end of August 2019,” Trai said in telecom subscription report for the month of August 2019.

The wireless subscriber base with 117.1 crore customers accounted for over

98 per cent of the total telephone users.

“Total wireless subscribers (GSM, CDMA and LTE) increased from

1,168.31 million at the end of July 2019 to 1,171 million at the end of August

2019,” the report said. The Mukesh Ambani-led Jio added 84.45 lakh mobile customers alone during the reported period.

Among the losers were, Vodafone Idea 49.56 lakh customers, followed by Bharti Airtel 5.61 lakh mobile subscribers, BSNL

2.36 lakh, MTNL 6,701 and Reliance Communications 63 users.

Government-run BSNL was the only operator gaining customers along with Jio since October

2018 but the public sector firm lost the steam in August 2019 with a dip in the subscriber base.

During the reported month 48.6 lakh customers ported out their number.

The wireline subscriber base declined by 1.5 lakh to 2.08 crore with BSNL alone losing 1.41 lakh fixed line customers. Private telecom operators Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel posted growth in their fixed line connection base.