Apple's Tim Cook rules out cryptocurrency move
Apple has entered the mobile payments space with Apple Pay, but has no interest in creating its own digital currency, according to the company’s CEO Tim Cook.
In an interview with Les Echos, he said: “I’m not comfortable with the idea that a private entity can create a modern currency.”
“Currency, like defence, should remain in the hands of states — it’s at the heart of their mission,” he added. “We elect our representatives in order for them to assume the responsibilities of government. Businesses are not elected — they should not encroach on this space.”
It’s a notably different stance than that being taken by Facebook, which is developing its Libra digital currency. In the mobile payments space, Apple is up against the likes of Visa, Mastercard and PayPal, all of which have agreed to participate in Libra, although it emerged this week that the latter was on the verge of quitting the project.
