Facebook's venture into cryptocurrency has not been as smooth as it may have expected. In an age where 'memecoins' like Baby Dogecoin and Shiba Inu Coin are regular releases, Facebook's size has created a more complex situation for Diem.
Here's the latest on Diem's release.
Diem Coin Release Date
As reported by CNBC, the Diem Association had earlier planned to release a pilot as a single stablecoin to the USD.
This comes after Libra - the previous branding for Diem - was initially set for a 2020 release. However, after facing a number of hurdles, this has been pushed back to 2021.
But the recent sources confirm that the Diem stablecoin project will never see the light of the day as the project executives have decided to sell the network's intellectual property and other assets to Silvergate Capital Corp.
The project had received intense backlash and criticism from the EU and US regulators concerning issues stating the Diem might compete with sovereign currencies and may have a deep macroeconomic effect on existing currencies at large.
However, recent developments in the sector confirm that the team behind Meta's Diem may soon be launching a new stablecoin project under a new name called Aptos, with a completely different set of guidelines and vision.
In a blog post, the team revealed new details on the development of the Layer 1 blockchain called Aptos to improve the scalability and flexibility of the existing networks.
Since its announcement in 2019, various companies in the then Libra Association departed the project. Both US and EU regulators also raised concerns about the digital currency plans.
In May 2021, the Diem Association scaled back plans for Diem's launch to focus on the US market. The association withdrew its payment license application from Switzerland to register as a money services business in the United States, alongside partnering with Silvergate bank.
What is Diem Coin?
Diem is a stablecoin tied to the US Dollar, first announced by Facebook in 2019. It is part of the wider Diem Association's project that initially hoped to release a multi-currency stablecoin basket. However, the focus has now shifted to these single-currency stable coins.
According to Diem's whitepaper, stable coins on the Diem Network will be backed by its Reserve assets.
It is governed by the Diem Association - an organization that will govern the whole Diem network alongside running the validator nodes for blockchain transactions. The Diem Association's members include the likes of Lyft, Spotify, Coinbase, Uber and Shopify.
The coin will sit on the Diem Blockchain and should be integrated with the Facebook-backed digital wallet Novi, previously known as Calibra.
Facebook is not the only entity exploring digital coins in crypto world, with Amazon touted to launch its own digital currency in the future. Similarly, a variety of countries are currently exploring the release of CBDCs - Central Bank Digital Currencies - such as a potential E-Euro release.
