Today, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, released the following statement after the Diem Association announced its sale, signaling an end to Facebook’s (now Meta) pursuit of a stablecoin product.
“Facebook ending its pursuit of Diem is good news for consumers. I still have major concerns with big tech companies moving into the financial space – especially to compete with the U.S. dollar – and the risk that brings to consumers and our entire economy,” said Brown. “We’ll continue to push for transparency and to hold fintechs accountable so we can protect workers, small businesses, and community banks.”
Senator Brown has been outspoken about his concerns since Facebook unveiled plans to pursue a cryptocurrency. He laid out Facebook’s past history of wreaking havoc on its own users in a July 2019 hearing and likened the rise of cryptocurrency to that of subprime mortgages before the 2008 financial crisis. When Facebook announced its continued pursuit of a cryptocurrency in fall 2021, Senator Brown again voiced his opposition, highlighting risk to consumers.
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