WASHINGTON — JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has added his name to the growing list of industry leaders and policymakers casting doubt on Facebook’s proposal to launch its own cryptocurrency.
At a conference Friday, Dimon, who also heads the influential Business Roundtable, said he doesn’t think Facebook’s proposed Libra cryptocurrency will ever launch.
"It was a neat idea that will never happen,” Dimon said at an Institute of International Finance conference. “And I have nothing else to say about it.”
Dimon’s comments came after numerous payments companies have backed away from participating in the Libra Association, a group that was formed to develop the proposed cryptocurrency.
After Facebook’s announcement over the summer about its plans to launch Libra, Democratic lawmakers floated ideas to block the project from moving forward while regulators sounded the alarm about Facebook’s ability to institute strong money laundering and privacy controls.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is scheduled to testify Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee, where he is expected to get questions about the cryptocurrency plan.
