Meta Urges Hands-Off Approach to Regulating the Metaverse

Meta Platforms Inc. is urging policymakers to hold off on creating new rules governing the metaverse.

In a policy paper released Friday, Meta argues that many of the world’s existing laws and regulations will also apply to activity in the metaverse — a catch-all term that refers to an immersive virtual world that doesn’t yet exist in which users could someday work, play games, shop and interact.

Edward Bowles, Meta’s head of fintech policy, told reporters that regulators could “stymie innovation” if they create an entirely new regulatory scheme for the metaverse.

It’s common for corporations, particularly Silicon Valley …