Facebook Coin: Good News for Cryptocurrencies

Mar 19, 2019

Facebook coin could not only generate millions, but also help further the adoption of cryptocurrencies, according to insiders.

Barclays’ Ross Sandler: Facebook coin could generate $19b

Barclays internet analyst Ross Sandler said that Facebook coin could generate anything from $3 billion up to $19 billion in additional revenue by 2021.

The social media giant is developing a cryptocurrency that will be used for peer-to-peer payments and will be tied to the value of traditional currencies. According to Bloomberg and the New York Times, the cryptocurrency will be available to use through Facebook’s Messenger “WhatsApp.” The revenue stream is something that is “sorely needed” according to Sandler and that by “merely establishing this revenue stream” it will begin to “change the story for Facebook shares.” “Any attempt to build out revenue streams outside of advertising, especially those that don’t abuse user privacy are likely to be well-received by Facebook’s shareholders,” Sandler said.

Facebook coin is a stablecoin which means it seeks to respond to price volatility which is a major problem for the adoption of cryptocurrencies as an everyday payment option. However, being tied to the US dollar, would make it “less attractive to speculators,” reported CNBC.

The virtual currency is seen as a positive step, Sandler explained because it will allow “for more premium content to find its way back to Facebook…as companies re-establish themselves on the social network as a strategic partner.” “Based on our checks, the first version of Facebook coin may be a single purpose coin for micro-payments and domestic p2p money transfer (in-country), very similar to the original credits from 2010 and Venmo today,” Sandler said.

According to Sandler, Facebook’s ambitions are significantly larger than those in the past, as the leader of Facebook’s blockchain and cryptocurrency efforts is former PayPal president David Marcus. Facebook has been slowly building its blockchain team, hiring a number of employees from startup Chainspace.

Binance CEO: “The More People Adopt Crypto, the Better”

Facebook coin, which is launching in the first half of 2019, will help further the adoption of cryptocurrencies, according to Binance CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.

CZ, who has also addressed the creation of both JPM and FB coins, believes that they will further the adoption of the cryptocurrency industry. He tweeted, that despite “unpopular opinion,” “In a decentralized world, anyone can do as they please (within limits, so long as they don’t hurt others). The more people adopt #crypto, the better. Adoption is #adoption. Welcome! How well will they do? Well, let’s wait and see.”

Therefore, for the rest of the cryptocommunity, the news is positive. As more and more companies and banks decide to use, create and launch cryptocurrencies, the more cryptos will be trusted and adopted.