Rep. Maxine Waters Says US Can’t Let Facebook’s Libra ‘Compete With the Dollar’

The chair of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee is doubling down on her calls for Facebook to pause development on its new blockchain, Libra.

Two days after calling for a hearing, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) appeared on CNBC Thursday afternoon calling for a “moratorium” on Libra development.

“It’s very important for them to stop right now what they’re doing so that we can get a handle on this,” Waters said of the social media giant. “We’ve got to protect our consumers. We just can’t allow them to go to Switzerland with all of its associates and begin to compete with the dollar.”

CNBC’s Waters interview made it clear her concerns are more with Facebook than with the company’s announced cryptocurrency project. Waters highlighted an ongoing investigation by the Federal Trade Commission into potential privacy violations concerning consumer data. She also mentioned a Department of Housing and Urban Development lawsuit that accuses Facebook of violating fair housing laws.

“And while we’re doing that they have moved on to develop this cryptocurrency,” Waters said on CNBC. “We’re now going to move and we’re going to move aggressively and very quickly to deal with what is going on with this new cryptocurrency.”

Waters isn’t alone in calling for public hearings on Facebook’s crypto aspirations, which were announced Tuesday. The U.S. Senate’s banking committee has already scheduled a July 16 hearing on Libra. Facebook blockchain lead David Marcus is reportedly expected to testify, according to The Verge.

You can watch the full interview below.

U.S. Representative Maxine Waters image via Shutterstock