The Libra Association, the group set up to manage Facebook Inc.’s proposed cryptocurrency, today appointed Stuart Levey as its first chief executive officer.

Levey (pictured, left), was under secretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence during the Bush and Obama administrations and more recently chief legal officer of HSBC Holdings plc.

“Stuart brings to the Libra Association the rare combination of an accomplished leader in both the government, where he enjoyed bipartisan respect and influence, and the private sector where he managed teams spread across the globe,” Libra Association board member Katie Haun said in a statement.

During his time in government, Levey is said to have been instrumental in setting U.S. and international policy to combat illicit finance. That he has that specific background is not a coincidence.

Libra, at least as it was first proposed, was alleged by lawmakers to be a potential conduit for illegal financial transactions and even terrorism. The absurdity of claims against the original proposal peaked when Congressman Brad Sherman compared Libra to 9/11 on July 17. “We’re told by some that innovation is always good,” Sherman said. “The most innovative thing that happened this century was when Bin Laden came up with the innovative idea of flying two airplanes into towers.” He then pantomimed planes crashing to the World Trade Center on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Libra Association Levey now runs is a different one from the one originally set up. Despite Facebook initially denying reports, the association announced April 16 that it’s abandoning its initial plans for a single Libra cryptocurrency and is now planning to launch a number of currency-backed stablecoins.

Levey will oversee the building of a payment network with a range of stablecoins tied to local currencies. The closest comparison to Libra 2.0 is to that of a bank that issues its own currencies backed by tangible assets.

Stablecoins have found success in cryptocurrency markets as a fixed digital asset that can be used to trade other cryptocurrencies — a go-between of sorts. Libra will be looking to do something similar, with its stablecoins being used to purchase goods.

According to Reuters, Libra currently plans to launch its first stablecoins between mid-November and the end of the year.

Photo: State Department