Youngest bitcoin millionaire unveils Facebook Libra 'killer'
'We’re going to finally bring crypto to the people – in ways that Facebook Libra only wishes they could,' Metal investor Erik Finman claims
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Your support makes all the difference.A cryptocurrency entrepreneur who became a bitcoin millionaire when he was still a teenager has launched a new venture that he claims will "kill" Facebook's Libra.
Erik Finman, 20, says peer-to-peer platform Metal Pay will be the first "all-in-one" cryptocurrency payments app and will change the way people send and receive money.
“We’re going to finally bring crypto to the people – in ways that Facebook Libra only wishes they could,” he wrote in a Twitter post announcing the launch of Metal Pay. “This. Is. The. Libra. Killer.”
It is an ambitious claim, given that Facebook has more than 2 billion users around the world and has partnered with payments giants Visa, Mastercard and PayPal for its Libra payment system.
Facebook announced Libra earlier this year but is yet to announce a launch date amid various regulatory concerns stemming from the US and Europe.
Facebook has faced criticism from some sectors of the cryptocurrency community for not being truly decentralised or peer-to-peer. It also does not support bitcoin or other major cryptocurrencies.
Metal Pay supports a range of cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ethereum, however it is not the only payments app that supports cryptocurrency transactions.
Mr Finman claims to be the "youngest bitcoin millionaire", having made his first investment in the cryptocurrency at the age of 12 thanks to the help of his relatives.
His new Metal Pay venture comes with its own associated cryptocurrency called Metal, which he believes will one day "beat bitcoin".
Despite this enthusiasm, Metal remains one of the world's most obscure cryptocurrencies and does not feature in CoinMarketCap's list of the top 100 cryptocurrencies.
It also suffers from extreme price volatility and has lost more than half its value since July.
At its peak in 2017, Metal was trading at around $12 per token. At today's prices, one token is worth less than $0.40.
We’ve teamed up with cryptocurrency trading platform eToro. Click here to get the latest Bitcoin rates and start trading. Cryptocurrencies are a highly volatile unregulated investment product. No EU investor protection. 75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs.
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