Facebook is weighing the creation of NFT-linked products and services. This was stated by David Marcus, head of the Payments division, in an interview with Bloomberg.
“We are certainly exploring options to participate in this space, as we believe we have real opportunities in it,” he said.
Marcus did not specify which NFT products Facebook might develop.
According to him, support for such assets is planned to be added to the Novi digital wallet. Regarding specific features, Marcus noted that users would need to create, store, lease, and sell tokens.
Head of Facebook Financial confirmed that Novi is ready for launch, but the company intends to roll it out alongside the Diem stablecoin.
In April, media reported that pilot launch of the coin would take place by the end of 2021. However, in August there were reports that the company behind the project, Novi Financial, is ready to abandon its own digital asset in favour of third-party stablecoins.
Marcus noted that Facebook views a potential Novi market entry without Diem as an “extreme scenario.” Both are needed to transform payments, to simplify and reduce their cost, he says.
In Marcus’s view, without further innovation in financial technology the United States and other Western countries could fall behind China in adapting to a world dominated by digital payments.
“We are indeed falling behind at an alarming rate,” he concluded.
Recall, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin expressed doubts about the success of Diem due to a high level of distrust towards Facebook.