Facebook digital currency and blockchain project “Calibra” has undergone some rebranding as of May 26th 2020 which includes a change in name, logo and addition of some new features and as such Calibra is no more.
No More Calibra, It’s Now The New Way
Based on a tweet by David Marcos, head of Facebook’s digital currency division, Calibra has successfully rebranded to Novi, a digital currency wallet for the Facebook’s Libra protocol ecosystem. The word is derived from two Latin words “via” and “novus,” which when combined together means “new way”. Calibra the parent company has been renamed to Novi Financial.
Novi comes from the combination of two Latin words, novus = new, and via = way. Novi will offer a new way to send, receive, and secure Libra currencies. Since Novi is designed for the Libra network, there’s a nod to Libra in our logo. 2/3
— David Marcus (@davidmarcus) May 26, 2020
Facebook in 2019, claimed Libra token would be a stablecoin backed by a number of traditional fiat currencies, to facilitate cross-border transfers and other transactions. The Novi Financial website presently lists fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar, Euro, and the British pound as currencies the stablecoin would be backed with.
The Broader Picture of the New Way
The rebrand of Calibra by Facebook is part of the changes Facebook intends to bring to its Libra project. Due to a number of regulatory issues, Facebook has lost several founding members of the Calibra project, such as Mastercard and Visa. However, there’s been some fresh air as Libra has since bounced back from its feet and has gotten in new members. Facebook has been working on a regulatory framework to meet all regulatory requirements.
There’s still no launch date for Novi or the Libra project to go live but the mission of Calibra by Facebook still remains creating an ecosystem where its users can easily send money “as easy as sending a message”. As stated in the first paragraph of this article there are plans to integrate the Novi Wallet with WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. In the area of KYC and verification, users of Novi wallet will need a government-issued ID to sign up for the service.
Please note that despite the rebrand there’s no launch date for the project to go live, disregard any online promotion of the project as of now.