- X acquires a license to process and handle crypto payments on behalf of its users from Rhode Island.
- The social media platform has been acquiring other payment licenses from other states as well.
- X expected to launch payment feature soon with crypto payments expected later.
Twitter, recently rebranded to X, has acquired a regulatory license that gives it permission to process cryptocurrency payments in the US. This places X in the right trajectory to becoming an everything app as Musk envisioned.
According to publicly available data from the Nationwide Multi-State Licensing System (NMLS), X acquired a Rhode Island Currency Transmitter License on August 28. Based on the license’s definition in an official document from the state’s Department of Business Regulation, X is permitted to conduct activities such as “maintaining control of virtual currency or transactions in virtual currency,” both for itself and on behalf of others.
This means that X is allowed to maintain digital assets for third parties as well as store, transfer, and exchange them on its platform. As of today, X is in a good position to offer cryptocurrency payment services to its over 450 million active customers.
In recent weeks, X has also secured money transmitter licenses from a number of other states such as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, and Maryland. However, the Rhode Island license appears to be the only one that specifically addresses cryptocurrency payments.
A currency transmitter license is necessary for companies who want to carry out activities relating to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency on behalf of their users. Additionally, the license also caters to suppliers of related services including exchanges, payment processors, and wallets.
X on a Transformation Streak
The acquisition of this license is the latest of several moves that X has implemented over time in a bid to integrate crypto into the platform for its users. Back in 2021, X, then known as Twitter, introduced a feature that gave users the ability to earn tips in Bitcoin.
In 2022, the site integrated NFTs, allowing users with a paid membership to confirm their ownership of an NFT, which can be identified by a hexagonal profile picture.
More recently, in April, X announced a feature allowing users to purchase stock, cryptocurrency, and other financial assets through its app. The action at the time was the first significant shift under Musk’s direction since the billionaire had just purchased the social media site.
The new feature has been made possible through a collaboration with eToro, a social trading company that enables customers to buy and sell financial assets such as equities, cryptocurrencies, and index funds.
The advancement was an extension of Twitter’s well-liked “cashtags” function, which let users monitor trading information for specific firms and index funds in real time. Due to the partnership with eToro, more assets and instruments can now be addressed by the cashtags function.
Musk has been vocal about his plans to make X an everything app, similar to China’s WeChat, but probably more advanced with more services. A fundamental piece of this plan has been to enable payments on X, not only in fiat currency but also in cryptocurrency.
This idea has been received with a lot of excitement and anticipation, especially by crypto enthusiasts due to the possibilities it unfolds. Aside from increasing the use cases for cryptocurrency, the actualization of the plan also accelerates the adoption of crypto.
More excited are Dogecoin holders and investors who hope that the cryptocurrency will be the first if not the only one to be accepted as the payment currency on the platform. This is mainly due to how supportive Musk has been of the currency in recent times even to the extent of replacing Twitter’s logo with that of Dogecoin for a while.
The Tesla CEO also adopted Dogecoin as an accepted currency to pay for Tesla products.
