Facebook Libra既非加密货币，也非ETF，而是一种革命性的法定货币形式

作者：Juan M. Villaverde

来源：魏斯评级（www.weisscrypto.com）

编译：数链评级（www.shulianratings.com）

原题：Facebook Libra: A New, Revolutionary, Fiat Currency

简介：Juan是一位计量经济学家和数学家，也是Weiss CryptoInvestor的联合编辑，Weiss Cryptocurrency Ratings、Weiss Cryptocurrency Portfolio和Weiss Crypto Alert的编辑。他构建了Weiss Crypto评级核心的技术和采用模型，并通过消除评级中的个人偏见而广受好评。

他毕业于乌拉圭共和国大学，获得经济学学位，2012年以来一直致力于对加密货币的分析。他的观点经常被包括Bitcoin，Cryptovest，Ethereum WorldNews，Independent UK，Ripple Coin News，Sludge Feed等在内的全球数十家出版物引用。

Juan M.Villaverde，Weiss Ratings

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目录

Libra是一种新型的、革命性的法定货币形式。

Libra好像是私营中央银行？

Libra与加密货币的增长是什么关系？

Libra=比特币+支付宝？

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正文

在最近几周内，关于Facebook的Libra项目已经有很多人说过和写过，这让很多人感到头晕目眩。

但是，正如加密世界经常发生的那样，其中大部分都是误导或根本不是真的。

Within just thelast couple of weeks, so much has been said and written about Facebook’s Libra,it’s making a lot of people very dizzy.

But, as oftenhappens in the crypto world, much of it is misleading or simply not true.

Libra是加密货币？

例如，有些人称Libra为“加密货币”。

For example,some call Libra a “cryptocurrency.”

是的，它使用加密货币技术。但从一开始，我们就指出，无论具体技术如何，加密货币的基本定义原则都是分散化。

Yes, it uses thetechnology of cryptocurrencies. But from the outset, we’ve pointed out that,regardless of the specific technology, the fundamental defining principle ofcryptocurrencies is decentralization.

Libra违背了这一原则。它由Facebook和强大的金融科技公司（包括Uber、eBay、Mastercard、Visa、Spotify和Vodafone等）支持、背书、发行和控制，它是中心化的。

Libra defiesthat principle. It is centralized, sponsored, issued and controlled by Facebookand a consortium of powerful tech and fintech companies, including Uber, eBay,Mastercard, Visa, Spotify and Vodafone.

Libra是ETF？

其他人将其视为某种投资工具，如交易所交易基金（ETF）。

Others view itas some type of investment vehicle, like an Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF).

是的，Libra将得到金融资产的支持，包括法定货币和以这些货币计价的政府债券。然而，与ETF或共同基金不同的是，Libra并不代表这些证券的份额。当这些证券升值时，它的价值不会上升。它也不会为产生的任何利润支付红利。

Yes, Libra willbe backed by financial assets, including fiat currencies and government bondsdenominated in those currencies. However, unlike an ETF or mutual fund, Libradoes not represent a share in those securities. It won’t rise in value whenthose securities appreciate. Nor will it pay dividends on any of the profitsgenerated.

恰恰相反，它的价值将是固定的。公司财团将保留所有利润。除了作为价值储存或交换媒介的实用性之外，Libra的持有者将获得zilch。

Quite to thecontrary, its value will be fixed. The consortium of companies will keep allthe profits. And other than its utility as a store of value or exchange medium,Libra holders will get zilch.

来源：BitMEX Research，《Facebook 推出名为 Libra 的固定收益 ETF，与 ETF 巨头贝莱德展开竞争》

Libra到底是什么？

鉴于目前Facebook计划的透明度，这些误解是非常奇怪的。

Given thecurrent level of transparency of Facebook’s plans, these misunderstandings arequite strange.

更奇怪的是，两个阵营之间的辩论 - 那些声称它是加密货币的人和那些认为它类似于ETF的人 – 火爆进行ing。

What’s evenstranger is that the debate between the two camps – those who claim it’s acryptocurrency and those who think it’s akin to an ETF – rages on.

我说两者都错了。

我再说一遍：Libra既不是加密货币，也不是一项投资，而是......

I say both arewrong.

I repeat: Librais not a cryptocurrency. Nor is it an investment. Rather …

Libra是一种新型的、革命性的法定货币形式。

Libra is a new, revolutionary form offiat currency.

称为革命性的一个主要原因：

It’srevolutionary for one main reason:

历史首次！我们正在目睹一种货币的出现，这种货币不是由一个主权政府支持和背书，而是由数十亿美元的大公司支持和背书的。

For the firsttime in history, we are witnessing the emergence of a currency that’s backedand sponsored not by a sovereign government, but by large multibillion-dollarcorporations.

这就是让Libra真正具有革命性的原因。不是它的技术，而是货币的私有化。

This is whatmakes Libra truly revolutionary. Not its technology. But rather the privatizationof money.

单个实体使用传统的法定货币来发行新型货币。它以充分的信念和信誉支持货币领域内的所有资产和生产力。此外，它还拥有各种资产的储备，特别是其他法定货币和以这些货币计价的债券。

With traditionalfiat money, a single entity issues the currency. It backs the currency with itsfull faith and credit -- all the assets and productive power under its domain.Plus, it maintains reserves with a variety of assets, especially other fiatcurrencies and bonds denominated in these currencies.

听起来有点熟？没错，因为这正是天秤座将要做的事情。

Libra的新特点是，与美元，英镑，欧元或日元不同，该实体是一些世界上最大的公司之一。

Sound familiar?It should. Because that's exactly what Libra is going to do.

What’s new andspecial about Libra is that, unlike dollars, pounds, euros or yen, the entityis a group of some of the world’s largest companies.

这是在现代从未存在过的一种货币形式。

It’s a form ofmoney that has never existed in the modern era.

私人货币！公司背书的货币！

Private money. Corporate-sponsoredmoney.

它使用与加密货币相同的技术——分布式分类帐技术（DLT） - 仅仅是达到目的的手段。

The fact that ituses the same technology as cryptocurrencies -- Distributed Ledger Technology(DLT) – is merely the means to an end.

这样做只是为了防止财团中的任何一家公司获得对资产的完全控制权。相反，这种新形势的货币是由委员会投票决定的，该财团的每个成员都获得投票。

And that end issimply to prevent any one of the companies in the consortium from gainingcomplete control over the asset. Instead, the idea is for decisions regardingthis new form of money to be made by committee.Each member of the consortiumgets a vote.

DLT是被用作执行决策规则的机制。

And theDistributed Ledger Technology is used as the mechanism to enforce thedecision-making rules.

Libra好像是私营中央银行？

Like a Private-sector Central Bank?

在很多方面，是的！该模型确实以中央银行的运作方式大量借贷。

In many ways,yes! The model does borrow heavily from the way central banks work.

将财团视为美联储，并将每家公司视为为联邦公开市场委员会（FOMC）提供一名董事会成员或代表，该委员会决定货币政策。

Think of theconsortium as a kind of Federal Reserve. And think of each company ascontributing one board member or representative to the Federal Open MarketCommittee (FOMC), which decides monetary policy.

Libra在所有权分配方面的立场是什么？

它可能不如政府货币那样的中心化，但也没有像比特币等加密货币那样的去中心化。所以......

Where does Librastand in terms of distribution of ownership?

It will probablybe less centralized than government currencies, but it doesn't even come closeto the decentralization of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.So …

Libra与加密货币的增长是什么关系？

What does Libra have to do with thegrowth of cryptocurrencies?

实际上关系很大。

A lot, actually.

首先，比特币的相对成功激励了许多公司和社区——无论大小——都在试图创造自己的货币。

在比特币之前，只有边缘社区才会想到这样做。但在这个加密货币的新时代，似乎每周都会出现一种新的货币理念。

First, it’s therelative success of Bitcoin that has inspired many companies and communities —big and small — to attempt to create their own money.

Before Bitcoin,only fringe communities would even think of doing so. But in this new era ofcryptocurrencies, it seems a new currency idea is born every week.

其次，Facebook及其财团将为DLT带来极大的声誉。它将有助于将加密货币从边缘传送到主流。

Second, Facebookand its consortium will lend great credibility to Distributed LedgerTechnology.It will help teleport cryptocurrencies from the fringes to themainstream.

即使Libra从未直接触及那些加密货币，它也必然会对任何加密产生更广泛的兴趣。

And even ifLibra never touches those cryptocurrencies directly, it’s bound to generate afar broader interest in anything crypto.

投资者将更加熟悉他们无法触及或感受到的资产，存入银行或添加到他们的IRA和401（k）账户中。

#编者注：

（1）美国的个人退休账户InpidualRetirement Accounts，简称IRA；

（2）美国1978年《国内收入法》中的（section401K)条款，它是美国一种特殊的退休储蓄计划。

Investors willbecome more comfortable with assets that they can’t touch or feel, deposit in abank, or add to their IRA and 401(k).

并且，我们可以设想未来的平台，提供简单的机制，直接将Libra转换为比特币，ETH和其他加密货币。

此外，还有另一个很少谈论的因素可能促成了这种货币的演变：

And, we canenvision future platforms that provide easy mechanisms for directly convertingLibra into Bitcoin, Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies.

Plus, there’sanother, little-talked-about factor that may have contributed to this evolutionof money:

Libra=比特币+支付宝？

A Fusion of Bitcoin and Alipay?

在中国创建的支付宝最初只是一个简单的支付应用程序，但后来它逐渐发展成为全国最大的商业银行（按用户数量计算）。

在中国政府对此进行打击之前，支付宝规模庞大，为中国一半的中小企业服务。

Alipay, createdin China, started as a simple payment application. But then it grew to becomethe largest commercial bank in the entire country (by number of users). 

Beforethe Chinese government cracked down on it, Alipay was so large that it wasserving half of the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in China.

而今天，如果你将天秤座视为比特币与支付宝的融合，你就不会偏差太远。它借鉴了两者的概念：

（a）免费，开放的加密资产

（b）集中支付应用程序。

And today, ifyou visualize Libra as a fusion of Bitcoin with Alipay, you wouldn’t be far offthe mark. It borrows concepts from both

(a) free, opencrypto assets and

(b) centralized payment apps.

支付宝或微信可能过于害怕或过于短视而无法创造一种全新的货币；他们坚持政府所允许的一切。

但现在，Facebook及其财团已经更进了一步。

Alipay or WeChatmay have been too afraid or too shortsighted to create a brand-new currency;they stuck with whatever their government allowed.

But now,Facebook and its consortium have taken it a step further.

最终的结果既不是政府发行的货币，也不是去中心化的加密货币，而是两者的融合。

And the endresult is neither government-issued money, nor decentralized cryptocurrency,but rather a fusion of the two.

一些怀疑论者说Libra是一种时尚潮流，不会成功。

Some skepticssay Libra is a passing fad and won't be successful.

我认为他们也错了。但即使他们在某种程度上是正确的，他们也错过了重点：

I think they’realso wrong. But even if they’re right to some extent, they’re missing the bigpoint:

这是历史上第一次有数十亿美元的公司开始创造自己的货币形式，仅这一点就会改变金融世界。并且，几乎没有任何主权政府可以或将会采取措施阻止它们。

This is thefirst time in history that multibillion-dollar companies have set out to createtheir own form of money. That alone will change the world of finance. Andthere’s next to nothing sovereign governments can or will do to stop them.

比特币永远改变了世界货币体系。

Bitcoin changedthe world's monetary system forever. 

天机已然泄露！

The cat is out of the bag.

无论是公司背书支持的货币，还是纯粹的加密货币，政府垄断货币发行和控制的日子已经屈指可数了。

Whether it'scompany-sponsored money or a pure cryptocurrency, the days in which governmentsmonopolize the issuance and control of money are numbered.

祝好！

Best！