Exit fuels crypto rumors

Facebook executive resigns from Coinbase board, prompting talk of blockchain plans.

Facebook Inc. executive David Marcus resigned from Coinbase Inc.’s board, a sign the social network giant is pushing ahead with its own blockchain work.

Marcus quit Friday, citing a new group he oversees at Facebook that is exploring potential blockchain uses. “I’ve decided it was appropriate for me to resign from the Coinbase board,” he said in a statement. CoinDesk, a blockchain news website, earlier reported the move.

Although Facebook has yet to announce how it intends to harness blockchain, some analysts believe the company will follow in the footsteps of other players and issue its own cryptocurrency or token.

If that happens, a board seat at Coinbase could be viewed as a conflict of interest, as Marcus could lobby the exchange to list a Facebook token, according to Lucas Nuzzi, director of technology research at Digital Asset Research.

“Many in the community were aware Facebook was expanding their efforts in this area,” Nuzzi wrote in an email. “After Kik and Telegram started their tokenization campaign, it seemed like a matter of time until Facebook jumped on the bandwagon.”

Kik Interactive Inc., a mobile messaging company, issued its own “kin” tokens, raising about $100 million, last September.

Telegram Group Inc., which runs an encrypted messaging app, made plans for “gram” tokens and raised $1.7 billion privately.

Smaller social network Minds plans to distribute 1 million tokens on Monday.