PayPal withdraws from Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency

U.S. payments processor PayPal announced Friday it was withdrawing from the Libra Association, a Facebook-led effort to build a global digital currency.

In a statement, PayPal said it would forgo any further participation in the group, saying instead it would focus on its own core businesses. "We remain supportive of Libra's aspirations and look forward to continued dialogue on ways to work together in the future," the company said in a statement.

With PayPal's departure, Facebook has partnerships with 27 other companies to create the cryptocurrency.

Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that both Mastercard and Visawere considering leaving the project overmoney laundering concerns.

In July, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell saidthat Facebook's plan to build a digital currency "cannot go forward" until serious concerns are addressedcomments that pressured the project and dented the price of the original cryptocurrency bitcoin.

He noted how Facebook's massive user base could spell problems in terms of smoothly implementing the cryptocurrency.