‘Visa, Mastercard and PayPal participate in Facebook’s payment method’

Facebook has found Visa, Mastercard and PayPal willing to invest ten million dollars in its upcoming payment method Libra. Facebook would like to introduce the payment method via a white paper next week.

In addition to Visa, Mastercard and PayPal, Uber would also participate with Libra, reports The Wall Street Journal. All those companies pay ten million dollars to serve as a node in the network for the payment method. The intention is that the control of the means of payment will lie with the Libra Association, an organization of all companies involved. For example, the control is not or not only with Facebook.

Presumably, Facebook wants to use the payment method to offer a payment option in its apps such as WhatsApp and Instagram in places where regular digital payment methods are not widespread or reliable.

Facebook will not charge transaction fees. It is not yet clear how the social network wants to earn money from the payment method. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said at F8 developer conference that he thought sending money should be as easy as sending a photo.

Libra has some features of a crypto currency such as bitcoin or ethereum, but it is unknown whether it also has a ledger, for example, with which everyone can see all transactions. Those details will probably come out when Facebook puts the white paper for its payment method online next week.

Libra should be available in a few countries as a test this year, with a release in many more countries early next year. The company has not confirmed or denied the rumors.