Earlier this week I wrote about how a number of Facebook’s partners for the Libra cryptocurrency now have cold feet and it seems Paypal is now the first member to pull out of the Libra Association.
Why? Well, as the company puts it they need to focus on their core business or in their words, “to continue to focus on advancing our existing mission and business priorities as we strive to democratize access to financial services for underserved populations.”
This is a pretty interesting statement given the fact that Facebook’s Libra is “supposed to democratize access to financial services for underserved populations” so it aligns well with Paypal’s goals, just not well enough for them to continue being part of the project.
The contradictions don’t end there. Paypal actually says they are still supportive of Libra:
We remain supportive of Libra’s aspirations and look forward to continued dialogue on ways to work together in the future
Paypal statement
Paypal’s words and actions aren’t really aligning. They say they remain supportive just after literally withdrawing their support from the association. They pledged to a cause and then decided “nope, we won’t be still doing this, but we still support the cause. All the best guys.”
More than anything this is likely more to do with the fact that regulators have been hovering over Libra and it’s associate members and it’s likely Paypal felt this project was not worth the effort.
