Libra Association Chief Operating Officer first voiced: Bank members may be added in the future, Libra online time may be adjusted

An executive at the Libra Association, which manages the Facebook cryptocurrency program, said that despite some recent high-profile departures, he "has confidence" that 100 members will join the organization when the Libra digital currency is launched.

In a CNBC telephone interview on Tuesday, Bertrand Perez, chief operating officer and interim managing director of the Libra Association, said companies including banks and financial institutions expressed interest in joining the digital currency program.

Currently, there are no banks among the 21 founding members of the Libra Association, and many of the established payment companies that originally promised to participate in the project, including Visa and MasterCard, have withdrawn in recent days.

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Perez said:

“Visa and MasterCard are unique. I won't tell you that we have the same members, but I will tell you that we have a reputable company and are active in the financial and banking sectors.”

Perez did not disclose the specific company name, but he said that the association will announce a new list of members in the coming months. He added that Facebook is initially scheduled to launch Libra in the first half of next year, but this time may be adjusted to address regulatory issues first.

"With such a grand project and our vision, there will be no major changes even if it is launched in the next few quarters or early."

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in an interview with CNBC on Monday that some companies that withdrew from the project "fear" that they could not meet strict regulatory standards. The Libra project has been closely watched by regulators around the world who are concerned that the project may pose risks to financial stability, facilitate money laundering, raise privacy concerns, or expose sovereign currencies to risks.

Perez said:

“We realized that we need to answer many of the questions raised by regulators and adapt them to this platform, which takes time.”

The founding members of the remaining 21 Libra associations met in Geneva on Monday, elected board members and signed a charter to commit to the Libra digital currency. Five board members include David Calicus, head of Facebook Calibra, and executives from Andreessen Horowitz, financial technology startup PayU, non-profit Kiva Microfunds and blockchain company Xapo Holdings.

These members also appointed three managers to the Geneva-based Libra Association, including Perez.

In June of this year, Facebook first announced plans for the cryptocurrency Libra, the non-profit Libra Association and the Calibra Digital Wallet. In a tweet on Monday, Calibra's Marcus once again reaffirmed the goal of “providing everyone with access to digital currency and financial services and reducing costs”.

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