• Twitter is reportedly preparing to offer payments, and Bitcoin is likely to be included.
• Elon Musk has expressed a preference for fiat payments but recognizes the potential of cryptocurrency.
• Musk’s past businesses have accepted bitcoin, and Twitter previously tested „tipping“ through the Bitcoin Lightning Network.
Twitter Preparing for Payments
Twitter has started applying for regulatory licenses across the U.S., signaling that it may soon enable payments on its platform. The company is currently mapping out the architecture needed to facilitate payments with a small team.
Elon Musk’s Vision
Elon Musk has expressed a desire to make Twitter into a „super app“ that prioritizes fiat payment, but also potentially includes cryptocurrency payment methods in the future. This idea is not new as Musk’s past businesses have already accepted Bitcoin in some form or another.
Bitcoin Lightning Network
The Bitcoin Lightning Network could provide increased functionality for cheap and instantaneous payments on the platform. To test out this idea, Twitter previously allowed users to tip each other via Jack Mallers‘ Strike and add their own Bitcoin addresses to receive tips directly.
Renewable Energy Concerns
In the past, Tesla had accepted bitcoin as payment for their electric vehicles, however this was later retracted due to concerns about renewable energy sources required by mining operations necessary for transactions using cryptocurrency.
Conclusion
It remains unclear if Twitter will follow through with these plans or how they will incorporate cryptocurrency into their „super app“ vision; however it appears that Elon Musk is open to exploring the potential of alternative payment methods such as Bitcoin in order to improve user experience on its platform.