Seven months ago, the current owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, said that before acquiring the social media giant, he would integrate cryptocurrency payments. According to sources, a team is working on infrastructure for a payment platform and Twitter is proceeding with regulatory approvals and registrations.
Elon Musk’s plan for Twitter payment system moves forward, adding cryptocurrency later
Elon Musk appears to be proceeding with plans to integrate a payment system into Twitter. According to sources cited by the Financial Times (FT), Elon’s lieutenant, Esther Crawford, is working in logistics and has built a small team. Musk has previously stated his intention to create a payment system, and in mid-June 2022, the current owner of Twitter mentioned the integration of cryptocurrencies.
“I think it would make sense to integrate payments into Twitter so that it’s easy to send money back and forth, and fiat and crypto, essentially, whatever someone finds useful,” Musk detailed during the first meeting with everyone. Twitter Staff.
Sources quoted by the FT on January 30, 2023 say that Twitter is also seeking regulatory registrations and state licences. Those familiar with the matter said that Twitter has begun applying for financial licenses in several states. The FT also reports that Musk has appointed Crawford to the role of CEO of Twitter Payments. According to FT sources, the payment system will initially handle fiat currencies, with plans to add cryptocurrencies later.
Before Musk took over Twitter, former CEO Jack Dorsey introduced a beta crypto tipping service and NFT features in 2021. In April 2022, Twitter worked with payments giant Stripe on the crypto payments pilot. . In November 2022, Bitcoin.com News reported that Twitter registered with the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to legally process funds. During a Twitter Spaces audio podcast, Musk said he could see Twitter offering money market accounts and debit cards.
However, a senior equity analyst and payments expert Lisa Ellis de Moffettnathanson LLC told the FT that companies face many regulatory hurdles in becoming a payment company, causing many to give up after initial attempts. “A lot of (tech companies) experiment and then give up,” Ellis said. “They view the long-term investment and risk, with potential fines for issues and the need for a constant licensed compliance infrastructure, as a burden.”
What do you think of Elon Musk’s vision of integrating payments into Twitter? Do you think it will succeed or will it face challenges like other tech companies? Share his thoughts on this subject in the comments section below.
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