(23 Oct 2019) Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is again appearing before Congress to face questions about his company's massive market power, privacy lapses and tolerance of speech deemed false or hateful. Zuckerberg has been summoned to testify at a hearing Wednesday by the House Financial Services Committee on Facebook's plan to create a global digital currency, which has stirred opposition from lawmakers and regulators in the U.S. and Europe.
It's the Facebook chief's first testimony to Congress since April 2018.
Lawmakers from both parties and top regulators - including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell - have criticized Facebook's plan for the new currency, to be called Libra.
They warn that it could be used for illicit activity such as money laundering or drug trafficking.
Zuckerberg sought to allay those fears Wednesday.
"There are important risks that need to be addressed," Zuckerberg said.
"But I also hope that we get a chance to talk about the risks of not innovating, because while we debate these issues, the rest of the world isn't waiting," he said.
"China is moving quickly to launch a similar idea in the coming months."
Zuckerberg admitted he wasn't sure that Libra would be successful. He also said that Facebook would not participate in launching Libra anywhere in the world unless U.S. regulators approve.
Rep. Maxine Waters, the California Democrat who heads the Financial Services panel, this summer asked Facebook to not move forward with the currency and a digital wallet called Calibra that would be used with it.
Waters has called Libra "a new Swiss-based financial system" that potentially is too big to fail and could require a taxpayer bailout.
Several high-profile companies that had signed on as partners in Facebook's governing association for Libra have recently bailed, spelling a potentially rough road for the project.
But many experts don't believe it's doomed.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a leading Democratic presidential candidate, has advocated breaking up Facebook and other tech behemoths.
In a major speech last week at Georgetown University, Zuckerberg defended the company's refusal to take down content from its platform it considers newsworthy "even if it goes against our standards."
Find out more about AP Archive:
Twitter:
Facebook:
Google+:
Tumblr:
Instagram:
You can license this story through AP Archive:
0 Comments