President Trump poured cold water Thursday night on Facebook’s plan to launch its own cryptocurrency, saying the social media platform would need to seek a banking charter.

“Facebook Libra’s ‘virtual currency’ will have little standing or dependability,” Mr. Trump tweeted. “If Facebook and other companies want to become a bank, they must seek a new Banking Charter and become subject to all Banking Regulations, just like other Banks.”

The president’s comments came hours after he held a White House event targeting Facebook, Twitter and Google for bias against conservatives.

Facebook has announced its intention to start a global cryptocurrency in 2020. With partners including MasterCard and PayPal, Facebook would establish the new digital coin called Libra.

The president said he is “not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air.”

“Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity,” he said on Twitter. “We have only one real currency in the USA, and it is stronger than ever, both dependable and reliable. It is by far the most dominant currency anywhere in the World, and it will always stay that way. It is called the United States Dollar!”

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers this week that Facebook’s plan to create Libra cannot move forward unless it addresses concerns over privacy, money laundering, terrorist financing and other questions.

Mr. Powell said the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council, a panel of regulators, will conduct a review of Facebook’s proposal. The Fed also has established a working group to monitor the plan along with central banks in other countries.

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.