I'd argue the outcome of this will be that Facebook will launch their own payments infrastructure on top of WhatsApp. There was no need for crypto or a Libra association to begin with.
Exactly this. Facebook will definitely move forward with some kind of payment system. Libra would have been fantastic for them if it had worked out but it was never their only option. They won't give up on Libra yet though.
I d certainly download whatsapp if they did. It's just mad that there is no such service in the west. It makes a lot of sense really, they 'd avoid the whole negative publicitly and they could have released it as quietly as they did with facebook credits long ago
> There was no need for crypto or a Libra association to begin with.
If you're in control of the currency it provides you more flexibility and the blockchain aspect arguably makes it easier to manage the accounting as well.
According to the leaked Facebook all-hands audio, Facebook is already planning to launch payments in Mexico by end of 2019 (https://qz.com/1719731/zuckerberg-confirms-facebook-payment-...).
I wouldn't be surprised if this goes extremely well for Facebook and WhatsApp payments becomes WeChat Pay / AliPay for the rest of the world.