A fresh Reuters report suggests that Libra, the cryptocurrency currently being developed by Facebook, could prove vital for the UN. Specifically, the head of the Libra Association has recently predicted that Libra could be an important ”boon” to the United Nations organization.

How could Libra be of use to the UN?

This news came during a blockchain event at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva. During the event, the Managing Director and COO of the Libra Association, Betrand Perez, made some lofty predictions.

Perez said that Libra could ultimately provide value to the international peace, security and cooperation body. Moreover, the crypto could – according to Perez – aid the organization’s strive to achieve a number of sustainable development goals.

This would happen through using Libra in ”eliminating poverty and achieving gender equality”. Although such predictions might sound lofty, crypto has already made a big impact in the developing world.

Put simply, the prospect of financial democracy and independence from banking institutions is especially alluring in areas that have poor to no existing banking infrastructure. As such, the UN could conceivably promote any crypto – not just Libra – in order to give such people access to a reliable currency.

Much uncertainty still surrounds Libra’s upcoming launch

Nevertheless, this came as Libra has seen substantial backlash from various regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. US regulators have been harsh towards Libra so far, with some even calling for a ”halt on development”.

In the European Union, on the other hand, fears have arisen over whether Libra may threaten the monetary sovereignty of nation states. Consequently, both Germany and France have suggested that they may block Libra.

During the UN blockchain event, Perez responded to some of these fears. He proposed that Libra does not directly compete with fiat currencies. ”We are not in the area of implementing any monetary policy with the [Libra] Reserve,” Perez said to those in attendance.

Notably, this comes as Forbes recently reported that blockchain is seen as a technology that could help the United Nations reach its sustainable development goals. As such, it is clear that the intergovernmental organization should be looking into crypto in general.

Nonetheless, one should mention that the advantages listed by Perez do not only pertain to Libra. Rather, they would be equally true for any cryptocurrency. Libra is currently slated for launch during mid-to-late 2020.

However, Facebook’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has recently hinted that this timeline may slip. One could, therefore, theorize that the United Nations may be looking into other crypto and blockchain alternatives – if the organization is indeed eyeing the sector.

Image Source: Forbes