Taking the opportunity to seize a fresh start that comes with a new year, Facebook’s Libra Association has rebranded to Diem Association.
The group chose the name Diem, which is Latin for “day” to signal a new day for the association. The rebrand will not change the mission of the organization, which is to build a safe, secure, and compliant payment system. The move will, however, serve as a way of “reinforcing its organizational independence.”
“The Diem project will provide a simple platform for fintech innovation to thrive and enable consumers and businesses to conduct instantaneous, low-cost, highly secure transactions,” said the Diem Association’s CEO Stuart Levey. “We are committed to doing so in a way that promotes financial inclusion – expanding access to those who need it most, and simultaneously protecting the integrity of the financial system by deterring and detecting illicit conduct. We are excited to introduce Diem – a new name that signals the project’s growing maturity and independence.”
As Levey suggests, the new name serves as a way for Diem to distance itself from Facebook, which initiated the association in June of 2018. This isn’t the first time the group has attempted to disassociate itself with Facebook. In May, the association changed the name of the Diem digital wallet from Calibra to Novi.
In addition to the rebrand, the Diem Association and its subsidiary that serves as the regulated payment system operator, Diem Networks, is reinforcing its ranks. The group has appointed Dahlia Malkhi as the Association’s Chief Technology Officer, Christy Clark as Chief of Staff, Steve Bunnell as Chief Legal Officer, and Kiran Raj as Executive Vice President for Growth and Innovation and Deputy General Counsel.
The news of the new hires comes on the heels of the company’s appointment of James Emmett as Managing Director, Sterling Daines as Chief Compliance Officer, Ian Jenkins as Chief Financial and Risk Officer, and Saumya Bhavsar as General Counsel.
Regardless of today’s seemingly upbeat news, Diem is still currently in limbo. The association is still waiting on regulatory approval, including a payment systems license for the operational subsidiary of the Association from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA).
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