Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, sent a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Meta Platforms, Inc. (formerly Facebook, Inc.); and Javier Olivan, Chief Operating Officer of Meta Platforms, Inc. In the letter, Congresswoman Waters expresses concern with Meta’s filing of five trademark applications related to digital assets services and blockchain technology and what those applications could portend for Meta’s entry into cryptocurrency. Congresswoman Waters requests that Meta respond to a series of questions to address concerns related to this latest action.
“I write to express my concerns regarding Meta Platforms, Inc.’s (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.) filing status of five trademark applications related to various digital assets services and blockchain technology with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO),” Ranking Member Waters wrote. “With its initial filings on March 18, 2022, Meta’s application submissions as of January 22 appear to represent a continued intention to expand the company’s involvement in the digital assets ecosystem. According to the filings, “The Trademark Act requires that a trademark or service mark application must include a ‘specification of … the goods [or services]’ in connection with which the mark is being used or will be used.”1 The following applications were submitted to the USPTO, which include goods and services descriptions in connection with a range of digital assets activities.” With the Committees ongoing concerns with financial stability and mixing banking and commerce, the letter requests answers regarding Meta’s plans related to digital assets, including:
Whether Meta intends on pursuing any projects related to Web3, digital assets, or digital wallets;
Whether Meta intends to file Statements of Use or Extension Requests on the referenced trademark applications;
To what extent Meta is conducting research and development into pilot programs, future stablecoin projects, or partnerships with stablecoin issuers;
Whether Meta is exploring the potential adoption of distributed ledger technology (DLT) applications in its platform;
Whether Meta is planning to launch a payments platform supporting cryptocurrencies; and
How Meta’s technology is enabling cryptocurrency creation, mining, storage, transmission, or settlement of cryptocurrencies.
In 2019, after Facebook announced its plans to launch its own digital currency, Libra, and a digital wallet, known as Calibra, then Chairwoman Waters sounded the alarm on the issues associated with a Big Tech company developing digital assets projects and conducted substantial oversight of the project, including a hearing where Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified. As a result of this oversight, Facebook decided to shelve these plans.
Mark Zuckerberg
Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Meta Platforms, Inc.
1601 Willow Road
Menlo Park
California, United States 94025
Javier Olivan
Chief Operating Officer
Meta Platforms, Inc.
1601 Willow Road
Menlo Park
California, United States 94025
Dear Mr. Zuckerberg and Mr. Olivan:
I write to express my concerns regarding Meta Platforms, Inc.’s (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.) filing status of five trademark applications related to various digital assets services and blockchain technology with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). With its initial filings on March 18, 2022, Meta’s application submissions as of January 22 appear to represent a continued intention to expand the company’s involvement in the digital assets ecosystem. According to the filings, “The Trademark Act requires that a trademark or service mark application must include a ‘specification of … the goods [or services]’ in connection with which the mark is being used or will be used.”[1] The following applications were submitted to the USPTO, which include goods and services descriptions in connection with a range of digital assets activities.
Trademark/Service Mark Application Serial Number 97320155: Online social networking and dating services, including a specific branch tailored for investors allowing financial trades and exchange of digital currency, virtual currency, cryptocurrency, digital and blockchain assets, digitized assets, digital tokens, crypto tokens, and utility tokens.[2]
Status, Aug. 15, 2023: Notice of Allowance (NOA) sent (issued) to the applicant. Applicant must file a Statement of Use or Extension Request within six months of the NOA issuance date.
Status, Sept. 5, 2023: Notice of Allowance (NOA) sent (issued) to the applicant. Applicant must file a Statement of Use or Extension Request within six months of the NOA issuance date.
Trademark/Service Mark Application Serial Number 97320146: Digital currency services, namely, currency trading of cryptocurrencies and other forms of virtual currency in the nature of digital and blockchain assets, digitized assets, digital tokens, crypto tokens and utility tokens. Cryptocurrency exchange services featuring blockchain technology, electronic transfer of crypto assets, financial exchange of crypto assets, and blockchain-based payment verification services.
Status, Sept. 5, 2023: Notice of Allowance (NOA) sent (issued) to the applicant. Applicant must file a Statement of Use or Extension Request within six months of the NOA issuance date.
Trademark/Service Mark Application Serial Number 97320144: Advertising services via electronic media, and virtual or augmented reality networks. Blockchain as a service, namely, business advice and information in the field of blockchain technology.
Status, Aug. 29, 2023: Notice of Allowance (NOA) sent (issued) to the applicant. Applicant must file a Statement of Use or Extension Request within six months of the NOA issuance date.
Trademark/Service Mark Application Serial Number 97320136: Downloadable software for managing and validating digital currency, virtual currency, cryptocurrency, digital asset, blockchain asset, digitized asset, digital token, crypto token and utility token transactions. Downloadable e-wallets, namely, downloadable computer Software for use as an electronic wallet.
Status, Jan. 16, 2024: Notice of Allowance (NOA) sent (issued) to the applicant. Applicant must file a Statement of Use or Extension Request within six months of the NOA issuance date.
Despite these trademark applications, which indicate there are specific goods and services connected with digital asset work that Meta is doing, Meta staff asserted on October 12, 2023, in communications with Democratic Financial Services Committee (Committee) staff that there is no ongoing digital assets work at Meta. Meta staff stated that the company is not currently conducting, nor planning any work on blockchain-based products or stablecoins. Additionally, Meta staff asserted that Meta is not working with any partners on integrating stablecoins or cryptocurrency into any payments or Metaverse products, and is not pursuing research and development in the space.
According to the USPTO, “If your application is based on intent to use, you can request changes until we issue a Notice of Allowance. If you've received a Notice of Allowance, wait until you file your Statement of Use. You can request changes in your Statement of Use form.”[4] Changes at this stage can include “restricting, limiting, or deleting goods and services.”[5] The status of the trademark applications above indicate that NOAs have been issued to Meta from August 2023 through January 2024. Within six months of the NOA issuance date, Meta is required to file a Statement of Use or an Extension Request reflecting these changes, including “restricting, limiting, or deleting goods and services” descriptions, to their application.[6]
Members of the Committee have previously expressed their concerns regarding Facebook’s potential creation of a cryptocurrency. On June 18, 2019, Facebook announced its plans to develop a new cryptocurrency, called Libra, and a digital wallet to store this cryptocurrency, known as Calibra. To collaborate on his endeavor, Facebook formed the Libra Association (later rebranded as the Diem Association), headquartered in Switzerland, comprising over two dozen companies and nonprofits.[7] In response, I issued the following statement: “Facebook has data on billions of people and has repeatedly shown a disregard for the protection and careful use of this data . . . Regulators should see this as a wake-up call to get serious about the privacy and national security concerns, cybersecurity risks, and trading risks that are posed by cryptocurrencies. Given the company’s troubled past, I am requesting that Facebook agree to a moratorium on any movement forward on developing a cryptocurrency until Congress and regulators have the opportunity to examine these issues and take action.”[8]
Then, on July 2, 2019, I, alongside former subcommittee and Task Force Chairs, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY); Congressman William Lacy Clay (D-MO); Congressman Al Green (D-TX); and Congressman Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA), wrote a letter to you; Sheryl Sandberg, former Chief Operating Officer of Facebook; and David Marcus, former Chief Executive Officer of Calibra, requesting an immediate moratorium on the implementation of Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency and digital wallet. The letter requested:
“(T)hat Facebook and its partners immediately agree to a moratorium on any movement forward on Libra—its proposed cryptocurrency and Calibra—its proposed digital wallet. It appears that these products may lend themselves to an entirely new global financial system that is based out of Switzerland and intended to rival U.S. monetary policy and the dollar. This raises serious privacy, trading, national security, and monetary policy concerns for not only Facebook’s over 2 billion users, but also for investors, consumers, and the broader global economy.”[9]
On July 17, 2019, I convened a two-panel, full Committee hearing entitled, “Examining Facebook’s Proposed Cryptocurrency and Its Impact on Consumers, Investors, and the American Financial System” featuring David Marcus, the former Chief Executive Officer of Calibra.[10] Shortly after, on August 25, 2019, I led a delegation of Committee Democrats to Switzerland to meet government officials and explore how the Swiss-headquartered Libra Association, which would issue and manage the Libra currency, would be regulated. Following the delegation, I emphasized my remaining concerns with allowing a large tech company to create a privately controlled, alternative global currency.[11] In October of 2019, I held a subsequent hearing with you on Facebook’s impact on financial services and housing.[12]
The President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG), along with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) echoed these concerns in their November 1, 2021, Report on Stablecoins. The Report warned, “the combination of a stablecoin issuer or wallet provider and a commercial firm could lead to an excessive concentration of economic power. These policy concerns are analogous to those traditionally associated with the mixing of banking and commerce, such as advantages in accessing credit or using data to market or restrict access to products.”[13]
After these criticisms, the Diem Association shut down its Libra project (later called Diem). Following congressional hearings and the departure of various Diem Association members, the Diem Association sold its assets for approximately $200 million to Silvergate Bank[14] – a U.S.-based cryptocurrency focused bank.[15] In a press release, the Diem CEO, Stuart Levey acknowledged that, “Despite giving us positive substantive feedback on the design of the network, it nevertheless became clear from our dialogue with federal regulators that the project could not move ahead.”[16]
However, the trademark applications described above seem to indicate that Meta has not ceased its activity in digital assets since the shutdown of Diem. Given the Committee’s ongoing concerns with financial stability and the prohibition of mixing banking and commerce, I request answers to the following questions:
Does Meta intend to pursue any projects related to web3, digital assets, or digital wallets?
Does Meta intend to file a Statement of Use or an Extension Request on the above-described trademark applications? If so, please provide proof of such filing to the Committee.
To what extent is Meta conducting R&D into pilot programs, future stablecoin projects, or partnerships with other stablecoin issuers?
Is Meta actively exploring the potential adoption of distributed ledger technology (DLT) applications in its platform?
Is Meta planning to launch a payments platform that supports cryptocurrency?
How is Meta’s technology enabling the creation, mining, storage, transmission, or settlement of cryptocurrencies in its related platforms, including its Metaverse?
Sincerely,
MAXINE WATERS
Ranking Member
Committee on Financial Services
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Background:
On July 2, 2019, then Chairwoman Waters wrote a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Facebook; Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer of Facebook; and David Marcus, Chief Executive Officer of Calibra, requesting an immediate moratorium on the implementation of Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency and digital wallet.
On August 25, 2019, then Chairwoman Waters led a delegation of Committee Democrats to Switzerland to meet government officials and explore how the Swiss-headquartered Libra Association, which would issue and manage the Libra currency, would be regulated.
