The proposal has prompted a backlash, though it is debatable whether the outcry is about a new cryptocurrency or whether it is because it is Facebook - with its myriad of data privacy problems - that is behind the move.

"I would go as far as to say it is about Facebook, it is only about Facebook, says Ingrid Owen, news editor at TechCrunch.

She says: "The thing about Libra is that Facebook is going to great extents to try to make it into something that is a collaborative effort."

It has secured involvement from the likes of Visa, Uber, eBay and PayPal.

But Ms Owen says: "It is really notable that there are no banks involved at this point and I think that it is the sort of thing that regulators will be scrutinising considering that they very, very heavily regulate how currency exchange and banks work."