Facebook and Farfetch Join Forces To Launch Libra, a Cryptocurrency Built on the Blockchain

As fashion brands continue to invest in Blockchain is currently the 'it' technology being adopted by fashion brands?

Set to be launched in the first half of 2020, Facebook has partnered up with 28 companies to create the Libra Association. The Libra Association will support Calibra, a corresponding digital wallet which will be available through Facebook’s messenger platform, WhatsApp, and a standalone app as well.

Libra founding members

Among the 28 founding members is luxury technology platform Farfetch. Positioned as a tech leader, Farfetch has signed up because Blockchain technology could potentially help them authenticate the quality of a garment and stamp out counterfeits. The platform, known for selling luxury goods, also hopes that the tech will help them improve intellectual property protection, increase transparency throughout the supply chain and product life cycle and, enable global, frictionless e-commerce.

On working to develop the Facebook-backed cryptocurrency, Stephanie Phair, Farfetch chief strategy officer said: “Blockchain has various potential uses for the luxury industry, such as IP authentication and supply chain [tracking]. However, the technology has to be stable, resilient and scalable, and we felt that the Libra Association and its partners, including Farfetch, will be able to deliver this.”

“If Libra is a success, the industry will embrace Libra.”

Phair continues: “The luxury fashion industry is embracing the technology. If Libra is a success, the industry will embrace Libra. But no one initiative is the whole story. Our blockchain strategy pre-dates Libra and goes beyond it”.

ALSO READ: LVMH’s Blockchain Platform To Put the Power Back In The Customers Hands

Facebook spokesperson added; “The way people pay for things is already changing, but no existing solution can address many of the challenges people face in gaining access to financial services. A global digital currency powered by blockchain technology offers specific advantages over traditional financial services, and an open-source blockchain will enable businesses and developers around the world to build services that meet the needs of their communities.”

Hoping to ensure that Blockchain technology is safe, secure and scalable for the industry at large, the 28 founding members will oversee the development and launch of the Libra Blockchain.

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Founding Editor in Chief at FashNerd.com | editor@fashnerd.com | Website

Founding editor-in-chief of FashNerd.com, Muchaneta is currently one of the leading influencers writing about the merger of fashion with technology and wearable technology. She has also given talks at Premiere Vision, Munich Fabric Start and Pure London, to name a few. Besides working as a fashion innovation consultant for various fashion companies like LVMH Atelier, Muchaneta has also contributed to Vogue Business, is a senior contributor at The Interline and an associate lecturer at London College of Fashion, UAL.