• Twitter is reportedly preparing for payments, potentially including bitcoin and other crypto.
• Elon Musk has expressed interest in adding crypto to the platform’s payment system.
• Twitter is currently applying for regulatory licenses in preparation for their payment system.
Twitter Preparing For Payments
Twitter is reportedly prepping to begin facilitating payments through the app, with a small team already mapping out the architecture needed to enable this functionality. According to a Financial Times report, Elon Musk has stated that he wants fiat payments prioritized first but also made with the ability to enable cryptocurrency later on.
Elon Musk Open To Crypto
Elon Musk has previously accepted Bitcoin for his Tesla electric vehicles, but later retracted the ability due to concerns about renewable energy. However, it appears he remains open to potential interoperability between Twitter and cryptocurrency in the future. Musk has reiterated since his taking over of the social media firm that he wants to see it become more of a generalized “super app” which would benefit greatly from increased functionality of cheap, instantaneous payments using a platform like Bitcoin Lightning Network.
Testing Bitcoin Tipping
Twitter previously tested “tipping” through Jack Mallers’ Strike via the Bitcoin Lightning Network, later adding the ability for users to add a Bitcoin address directly receive tips. This could be seen as an indication that Twitter may eventually move into full-fledged crypto payments on its platform depending on how they choose to develop their payment infrastructure going forward.
Regulatory Licenses
Twitter has reportedly begun applying for regulatory licenses across the U.S., likely in preparation for their payment system launch sometime down the line. It remains unclear at this time what form these regulations will take and if crypto or other alternative forms of payment will indeed be included in this framework going forward, but it appears that preparations are underway nonetheless.
Conclusion
While not much can be conclusively said at this point regarding Twitter’s plans regarding crypto and other alternative forms of payment on its platform, it appears that some groundwork is being laid down behind-the-scenes which could eventually lead to some interesting developments concerning digital currency use on one of today’s most popular apps and websites