By Barbara Ortutay
A once-ambitious Facebook-backed digital currency project — formerly known as Libra, now called Diem — is shifting operations from Switzerland to the U.S. and said it plans to launch a cryptocurrency tied to the U.S. dollar later this year.
As part of the move, Diem said it is also withdrawing its application for a payment system license from the Swiss Financial Markets Authority, which it has not been able to secure thus far.
The Diem Association, which includes Facebook and 25 other companies, said Wednesday has it entered a partnership with Silvergate Capital Corp. to issue a “stablecoin” backed by the U.S. dollar. A stablecoin is a digital currency backed by real-world assets such as national currencies or other commodities.
As the name implies, stablecoins are designed to not fluctuate wildly in value. That's in sharp contrast to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, whose value is not tied to a real-world currency and whose price has ranged between roughly $9,000 and $63,000 over the past year.
Facebook announced the Libra project in 2019, at the time envisioning it as a stablecoin based on a basket of national currencies. Since then, the effort has been scaled back considerably amid regulatory and commercial backlash. It underwent a name change in December 2020.
Wednesday's announcement represents a further scaling back as Diem shifts focus to the U.S. from its original ambitions to become a global currency for the unbanked around the world.
It's Women's History Month and Tuesday marks Equal Pay Day. To honor the occasion, Laura Gassner Otting, author of Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life, spoke with Cheddar News' correspondent Shannon LaNier about how to properly value yourself and get the pay you deserve, regardless of your gender.
Southwest Airlines Co. on Tuesday outlined a plan to strengthen its operational resilience after a winter storm late last year led to widespread cancellations and delays.
Novo Nordisk has announced that it's cutting the price of pre-filled insulin pens and vials by up 75 percent for people living with diabetes starting in January 2024.
Abhay Parasnis, the CEO and founder of Typeface, addressed the company's exposure to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. fo
Stocks are leaping on Wall Street Tuesday, as some of the most breathtaking moves from a manic Monday reverse course.
Facebook parent Meta is slashing another 10,000 jobs and will not fill 5,000 open positions as the social media pioneer cuts costs.
The latest consumer price index (CPI) shows prices rising 0.4 percent month-over-month in February, down from 0.5 percent in January, while the annual inflation is up 6 percent, down from 6.4 percent.
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A winter storm dumped heavy, wet snow in parts of the Northeast on Tuesday, causing tens of thousands of power outages, widespread school closings, dangerous road conditions and a plane to slide off a taxiway.
Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse rattled the technology industry that had been the bank's backbone, leaving shell-shocked entrepreneurs thankful for the government reprieve that saved their money while they mourned the loss of a place that served as a chummy club of innovation.
