Key takeaways:
- Tech billionaire Elon Musk is reportedly trying to turn Twitter into a “super app” capable of processing payments between users directly on the platform
- Initially, the focus will be on fiat payments, with room for crypto functionality to be added sometime in the future
- Musk’s goal is to generate $1.3 billion in revenue with Twitter payments by 2028
Fiat payments to be added first, crypto at a later point
Social media company Twitter has begun preparations to allow payments on its platform as part of CEO Elon Musk’s plan to create fresh revenue streams for the company, according to a report by Financial Times. The news comes off the heels of a controversial Twitter Blue subscription program that launched in December, which charges users $8 per month for a blue checkmark and edit tweet functionality.
Twitter’s $5 billion per year advertising business has declined since Musk bought the platform for $44 billion in October. To compensate for the significant dip in revenue, Musk wants to offer fintech services such as peer-to-peer transactions, savings accounts, and debit cards.
“Musk’s vision goes far beyond that,” FT noted and added that the Tesla billionaire wants to explore ways to “reward creators directly” and for users to buy items from one another directly on the social media platform.
The proposed functionality will be rolled into what Musk has previously dubbed as Twitter “super app”. To achieve this, Twitter is reportedly applying for regulatory licenses across the US, including registering with the US Treasury in November as a payments processor. In addition, Esther Crawford, Twitter’s director of product management, has been appointed as the CEO of Twitter Payments.
The goal is to bring in $1.3 billion in payments revenues by 2028. The entry into payments will undoubtedly face challenges and competition from established players, and high levels of regulatory scrutiny.
Per Musk, the upcoming payments functionality will focus primarily on fiat, but will leave the option to incorporate crypto payments down the line. The exact timeline is unknown.
After the news, the price of Dogecoin – the meme coin that is widely regarded as Elon Musk’s favorite crypto – jumped over +10%, in stark contrast to the red zone trading most other crypto assets have found themselves in over the last two days.
The price increase can most likely be attributed to investors speculating on whether a crypto payments integration on Twitter will see Dogecoin support. There is clear precedent for that, as Musk’s electric car manufacturer Tesla added support for DOGE payments last year.
