David Marcus, head of Novi, the project that will launch Facebook in the world of cryptocurrencies, announces that he will leave the company by the end of the year. He will be replaced by Stephane Kasriel.
Novi: the head of the cryptocurrency division leaves Facebook
As we have reported several times, Facebook is preparing its entry into the world of cryptocurrencies, with New. However, the efforts to launch the new crypto have repeatedly encountered various obstacles in their path. At the moment it is assumed that the arrival of the new cryptocurrency may coincide with the launch of the much discussed one metaverso. In the past few hours, however, another news has arrived that is destabilizing the Novi universe: the abandonment of the head of the division David Marcus. The announcement arrives via Twitter by Marcus himself, who confirms his goodbye to Facebook by the end of the year.
Personal news: after a fulfilling seven years at Meta, I’ve made the difficult decision to step down and leave the company at the end of this year. (1/7)
– David Marcus (@davidmarcus) November 30, 2021
Marcus joined Meta, which was then called Facebook, in August 2014, returning for two years as president of PayPal. After a start at the head of the division Messenger, joined the Facebook unit dedicated to funded projects in 2018. We are talking about the same division that then announced the launch of Libra and the digital wallet Calibra, in June 2019. The two projects, which should have seen the light in 2020, were never realized, and the brand announced, in 2020, the imminent arrival of Novi, with a new cryptocurrency called Diem.
Marcus’ departure follows that of other key executives who have led Facebook’s efforts in the cryptocurrency blockchain. The founder of the project Morgan Beller left the company in September 2020, followed by Kevin Weil, another of the founders of the project, who decided to join in March Planet, a San Francisco company that operates a fleet of satellites.
“We would not have taken such a big turn in Diem without your guidance, and I am grateful to you for contributing to the Meta world,” wrote the Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a comment on Marcus’ profile, which he then tweeted:
“I can’t wait to see all of this from the outside. I know it will be something huge ”.
It will succeed him Stephane Kasriel.