Meta closes the Novi crypto wallet and urges users to withdraw funds from it
Meta is shutting down its Novi digital cryptocurrency wallet. It was previously known as Calibra. From July 20, the company will stop adding funds to the wallet, and on September 1, the platform will be completely closed.
Meta recommends that users withdraw existing funds from their balances ‘as soon as possible’. It also states that the company will ‘attempt to transfer’ any money left in wallets to customers’ bank accounts and debit cards after Novi is closed.
Novi shutdown effectively marks the end of Meta’s cryptocurrency ambitions. Last October, the company launched a ‘small pilot project’ with Novi, but without the support of its own cryptocurrency Diem (formerly known as Libra). A month later, the head of the cryptocurrency direction at Meta, David Marcus, left the company. In early 2022, Diem Association announced the sale of its assets and the ‘winding down’ of operations.
But the death of Novi and Diem does not mean that Meta is completely abandoning the idea of using its own digital wallet. Recently, Mark Zuckerberg introduced Meta Pay – a digital wallet for the meta universe.
