This week, the whole world got a sneak peek of the Libra Blockchain, Facebook’s most ambitious crypto project that gathers a global consortium of multinational corporations and organizations with the goal of building a new global currency.

It is definitely the Fintech moment of this century, and should Zuck’s plan get executed properly, and his vision materializes – it has the potential to disrupt the banking system in a snap, rather like that Kodak moment decades ago in the last century.

Scouring through its White Paper, the goal for Libra is “a stable currency built on a secure and open-source blockchain backed by a reserve of real assets and governed by an independent association.”

So, it is a currency - Facebook’s own version of crypto. Perusing and going over the technical white paper released this week, here are nine major takeaways:

• It will start as a permissioned blockchain but will aim to be permissionless in the future.
• There will be an STO (Security Token Offering) called Libra Investment Token.
• Validators on the network need to buy at least US$10Million worth of LITs and are expected to incur an annual cost of approximately US$280,000.
• The code is open source.
• Facebook will be one of the 100 validating nodes and won’t have more than 1% of the voting power.
• It is governed by a non-profit association, not by Facebook itself.
• Facebook’s entity Calibra, which is the project lead for this venture, is already FinCEN registered as MSB in 50 states.
• Test-net is live, but the launch is 2020.
• There is a new programming language for this Libra blockchain called Move.

Now the question is, will it have the potential to kill your bank?

As revealed through its White Paper, it will offer the Calibra digital wallet app – and this means saving, spending and sending money across Facebook’s marketplace as well as through the global e-commerce environment.

It will also contain a built-in fraud protection feature and comes with a ‘dedicated’ 24/7 customer service. Imagine, you will be able to send the currency through WhatsApp and Messenger.

Also, Libra offers ‘lower costs’ and will aim to keep transaction fees at the minimum with full transparency. Given this, it seeks to increase global access to the financial ecosystem and tap the unbanked. Ergo; For those who can’t afford to open a bank account, your Facebook account will just be as good.

We are all looking forward to tinker and play with the Libra app as it aims to go live by 2020. Its current comprehensive backers that will accept the Libra token includes Mastercard, Uber, PayPal, and Spotify. Quite a supporting cast!

To pivot: In recent months, Facebook has been plagued with 'trust' issues in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

However, being able to send money quickly and easily through WhatsApp brings a whole world of relief for most of the unbanked and undoubtedly a compelling selling point.

Convenience and absence of notorious supporting documentation are key without the rigorous requirements of sending or accepting money as usually required by banks and money transfer agents.

The winning advantage is Libra’s tight integration with Facebook’s enormous user base.

That is its huge competitive edge. It has certain traction and adoption rights then and there.

It definitely is a mighty disruption for the historic banking system.

The BIGGEST question now is, will Banks worldwide, that have enjoyed government protection over the CENTURIES allow it?

Let’s see how that chapter unfolds.

We see many hurdles and massive obstacles of vested interests and historic entitlements ahead.

The future of Facebook, [along with other major tech giants] is far from assured in the present form, let alone Libra.

Let’s Face It [no pun intended] Turkeys don't vote for Christmas.