Facebook Hires New Lobbyists for Libra Stablecoin Project

Social media giant Facebook has hired two more lobbyists to aid the release of its forthcoming Libra stablecoin.

As Bloomberg reported on Sept. 5, lobbying disclosures filed earlier this week revealed that William Hollier, the president of legislative and regulatory counseling firm Hollier Associates LLC, began lobbying for Facebook on blockchain policy, among other matters, in late August.

Previously, Hollier worked for U.S. Republican Sen. Mike Crapo, who said at a hearing on cryptocurrencies and blockchain, “Facebook’s Libra project has generated renewed interest in digital currencies and blockchain [...] with the appropriate balance of regulation, digital currencies, and their innovative underlying technology, could provide meaningful benefits.”

The other lobbyist, Michael Williams of the Williams Group began lobbying for Facebook in July. Previously, Williams served as a managing director for investment banking company Credit Suisse Securities.

More support for the Libra project

In late August, Facebook hired Washington-based lobbying firm FS Vector — a consultancy firm that specializes in regulatory compliance, public policy and business strategy for the fintech, cryptocurrency, blockchain and financial services sectors. The firm will purportedly help Facebook grapple with the negative response to Libra.

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss — Bitcoin (BTC) bulls and founders of the Gemini crypto exchange — also said that they are open to partnering with Mark Zuckerberg on Libra. Cameron argued that Libra represents a step toward the mass adoption of cryptocurrency.

However, reports surfaced in late August that at least three of Facebook’s early backers for its planned Libra stablecoin launch were considering withdrawing their support in light of the fierce regulatory pushback.