Sharp interpretation of Zuckerberg’s testimony: avoiding heavy weight, not fundamentally answering why the approval of Facebook

Author: Nathaniel Whittemore, chain block media people

Compile: LeftOfCenter

Source: Chain smell

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will go to the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee on Wednesday to testify in the pre-prepared testimony that he said Facebook-backed cryptocurrency Libra "will raise US financial leadership Status, and our democratic values ​​and supervision around the world."

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The blockchain media person Nathaniel Whittemore fully endorsed Zuckerberg’s testimony and explained it. The following is the translation of the chain, the reference part is Zuckerberg’s testimony, and the following is Whittemore’s Interpretation.

More than 1 billion people in the world today do not have access to bank accounts , but if the right system exists, they can enjoy these banking services on their mobile phones. These people include 14 million Americans, and being rejected by the financial system will have a huge impact on people's lives, and often the most vulnerable group pays the highest price.

Whittemore: A very familiar sentence, every time the hearing is done by David Marcus.

The cost of paying people is too high, and it has to wait for a long time – in order to send the money home. The current system disappoints them. The financial industry is stagnant and there is no digital financial architecture to support the innovation we need. But I believe this problem can be solved and Libra can help. The idea behind Libra is that sending money should be as simple and secure as sending a text message. Libra will be a global payment system, fully supported by cash and other highly liquid assets.

Whittemore: We can't fall behind in the field of innovation.

I believe this is what needs to be built, but I know that we are not yet the ideal messenger. In the past few years, we have encountered many problems, and I believe that people hope that anyone other than Facebook can come up with this idea. But we care about this for a reason. Facebook's mission is to put power in people's hands. Our services enable people to express what is important to them and build a business that creates opportunities.

Whittemore: You hate us. The more accurate statement is to hate me, but there are more important things than this.

But we care about this for a reason. Facebook's mission is to put power in people's hands. Our services enable people to express what is important to them and build a business that creates opportunities. It is also important to let people control their money. The simple, safe and stable way to transfer funds is a kind of authorization. In the long run, if this means more people use our platform, it will be good for our business. But even if it is not, it can help people around the world.

Whittemore: The above paragraph answers why Facebook wants to be the person who does this, not why Facebook is the only one who does this (right).

Whittemore: Compared to the last hearing, China is clearly at the forefront and central location.

We co-authored a white paper to make this idea public and engage in dialogue with regulators, experts, and governments. Today's hearing is an important part of this process. The issues we are discussing today are extremely important to any company . That's why we helped establish the original intention of the Libra Association, a consortium of 21 companies and non-profit organizations that work hard to make financial tools available to everyone.

Whittemore: The question they need to answer more is whether private companies should do this.

Even if the Libra Currency Association is independent, we can't control it, but I want to clarify that Facebook will not launch the Libra payment system anywhere in the world until it is approved by US regulators.

Whittemore: Double commitment.

People should not be discriminated against in any of our services. We have appropriate policies to prevent hate speech and remove harmful content. But discrimination can also be reflected in the positioning and playback of advertisements. As part of a settlement with civil rights organizations, we have banned advertisers from using age, gender, or zip codes to locate housing, employment, or credit opportunities, and we have limited the interest of these ads. This is part of our commitment to support civil rights and prevent discrimination.

Whittemore: Looking forward to the issue of political campaign advertising

For Facebook, these years have been challenging years. I realize that we play a unique and important role in our society. I feel very fortunate that in this position we can make people's lives different, and as long as we are here, I am committed to using our position to push us to believe in the great ideas that can give people greater power.

Whittemore: Please note that we have used the previous five paragraphs to describe the burdens that are completely unrelated to Libra.

Libra is a potential approach , and we are proud to help build a consortium of 21 companies and non-profit organizations that are now committed to helping advance this goal. Building this broad-based alliance is a positive step, and I welcome the conversation about Libra igniting a spark. But from the design point of view, we do not expect to lead these efforts forward. The Libra Currency Association has been established, with and with appropriate governance structures that will drive the project forward.

… At Facebook, we are also exploring other ways to get more people to access financial services. For example, reduce remittance costs through our existing platform. We recognize that other organizations are working hard to address this challenge, and we support that. Whittemore: This section uses a new narrative approach. The feeling is, "This is more important than any company, <shrug> We just think we have to do something!"

I know that the Libra Coin Association will notice these things as we move forward , and on Facebook, we are also looking at these issues as we explore what we can do to solve inclusive financial problems as a company.

Whittemore: hint that he has left the Libra Association

Facebook is committed to providing strong protection for the financial information we receive from consumers, and I want to clarify how we handle this information:

• We do not sell people's data;
• We don't use people's data to make decisions about borrowing, nor do we use it to create credit reports;
• We do not share information on lending or credit decisions with third parties;
• We use information about product transactions to improve our services, including advertising. However, we do not use people's payment account information for advertising purposes.

Whittemore: Discussing Libra's problems, but it does reflect the bigger problem that has not been resolved in Facebook's (and the Internet in a broad sense) business model.

The last question is whether Libra intends to replace sovereign currency and whether it is appropriate for private companies to participate in such innovation. I want to make it clear: This is not trying to create a sovereign currency. Like existing online payment systems, it is also a way for people to trade.

Monetary policy is the responsibility of central banks rather than Libra. Libra does not want to compete with any sovereign currency and does not want to enter the monetary policy arena. It will work with the Federal Reserve and other central banks responsible for monetary policy to ensure that this is the case. We expect the Libra Association's management framework to ensure that the association does not interfere with monetary policy. Libra is also designed with economic security in mind and will be fully supported by the Libra Reserve Reserve.

Whittemore: Reiterating our previous argument: "This is good for law enforcement."

We also believe that Libra offers an opportunity to strengthen financial crimes such as money laundering and terrorist financing. Many illegal activities are funded by cash . Such a digital payment system will be more secure in the context of effective upstream and downstream regulation and proper understanding of customer behavior, and law enforcement and regulatory agencies can also analyze online activities.

Whittemore: See if they can take any action on this, or whether the current anti-technical arguments are too strong before entering the election year, and it will be interesting to witness them.

These jobs, investments, and innovations are not accidental. They are the result of our willingness to try new things, and of course they are difficult and not always effective. I understand people's concerns about Libra. But I think that if companies are not willing to accept such challenges, but choose more conservative choices to consolidate the status quo, this is not good for our country and the world. This will undermine our country's reputation for innovation, reduce our economic competitiveness, and ultimately concentrate more power on existing players.

Whittemore: I would be shocked if no one finally asked him if "discrimination" had spread to politicians who "they" (the Californian liberals) did not like.

While we believe in innovation, we also recognize that we have a responsibility to ensure that the products and services we launch are used to do good things. For example, people on Facebook should not be discriminated against .

Whittemore: Literally, half of these testimonies are answers to Facebook’s past “faults” in order to clear doubts about the issue of stable coins.

Final thought

For me, these answers did not fundamentally answer "Why should Facebook be allowed to issue stable coins?" In fact, it did not even try to answer this question.

Instead, just try to answer a question, why shouldn't Facebook be prevented from doing this, "because we have corrected previous behaviors and errors."

"We don't discriminate" is a good thing, but to a certain extent, everyone is worried that China will lead in digital currency. For "why are we doing this," the more real answer is actually "we can compare Anyone can do this faster and better, and we are the only ones who can accept your actual control."

What I am worried about is that this does not answer the key question, why a private company should be allowed to compete with the Chinese government for digital currency leadership. Maybe some politicians will say, "You are right, we It must be done, but let us set up a committee to figure out what is going on here."

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