Despite defections, Facebook officially launches Libra

Facebook is officially moving forward with its digital currency project Libra, despite several high-profile defections from the project and intense criticism from U.S. regulators and politicians.

The Libra Association, the nonprofit that will govern the currency, officially signed on 21 charter members at the organization's inaugural meeting in Geneva. Originally the Libra Association had 27 potential members, but several companies dropped out in recent days, including Visa, Mastercard and PayPal.

Facebook has faced criticism since the summer when it unveiled plans to create a separate, private currency system to allow users to make cross-border payments more easily. Politicians have said they believe Facebook's struggles with protecting users' privacy would spill over into Libra, despite it being a separate organization.