COINHOT – Fintech giant Stripe has entered the world of cryptocurrencies with features that allow businesses to pay their users through cryptocurrencies. The move will start with one of the popular social media, Twitter.
The $95 billion online payments company said Friday it will begin providing merchants with the ability to make cryptocurrency payments through stablecoinUSDC, issued by crypto firm Circle.
Stablecoin is a token tied to a fiat currency to keep the price stable. In the case of USDC, as the name suggests, the cryptocurrency is backed by the US dollar.
Twitter will be the first company to integrate this new payment method. Starting Friday, the social media platform that has been the subject of recent talk of potential acquisitions by Tesla CEO Elon Musk will allow select content creators to make a living through the USDC paid ticket space and Super Follows feature.
Eligible users of the Ticket Spaces and Super Follows Twitter programs will be able to receive their earnings by doing business on Stablecoin.
The cryptocurrency payment features will then run on the Polygon network, a solution called “Layer Two” on top of the Ethereum network to handle transactions faster and at lower cost.
This is Stripe’s first significant move into crypto since dropping support for Bitcoin four years ago.
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The San Francisco-based startup stopped accepting bitcoin payments in January 2018 due to price fluctuations and a lack of efficiency in conducting day-to-day transactions.
However, since then the company has dabbled in cryptocurrencies again and finally came up with this new feature.
“As a result, we explored ways to use crypto platforms to open up wider access,” said Karan Sharma, product manager for Stripe’s crypto unit.
“We plan to add additional rail support and payment currencies from time to time.”
Stripe is not the only company to have opened its platform to cryptocurrencies. Other payment companies such as Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal, along with other major payment processors, have announced their decision to enter the crypto industry.
Earlier, Tesla CEO and millionaire Elon Musk returned to Twitter. This time he recommended Twitter Blue, the social media giant’s subscription service. These include discounts, Dogecoin payment options, and ad blocking.
Elon Musk, who now owns 9.2% of Twitter, is a prolific Twitter user, often driving the market through Twitter posts.
Elon Musk was appointed to Twitter’s board of directors on Tuesday, April 6, 2022. He hopes to work with the board to drive meaningful improvements to Twitter in the months ahead.
Launched in June 2022, Twitter Blue is the social media giant’s flagship subscription service for those willing to pay for exclusive access to special features like undo tweets, app icons Custom Twitter and the ability to add bookmarks.
In a series of tweets on Saturday, April 9, 2022, Musk advised against announcing discounts and subscriptions.
He wrote, “Everyone who subscribes to Twitter Blue (i.e. pays $3 a month) should get an endorsement token.”
“Rates can be $2 per month but are prepaid 12 months and account is unreported for 60 days (refund note) and suspended without refund if used for fraud/spam,” Musk said.
“Ad-free. The company’s ability to determine policy grows exponentially if Twitter relies on ad money to survive,” he added.
Elon Musk also suggested that pricing “should be consistent with affordability and in local currency”.
“Maybe even a Doge payment option? ” Suggests referring to cryptocurrencies.
Twitter has yet to respond to CNBC’s request for comment. Twitter Blue is only available in the United States (US), Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
The undo feature allows followers to edit their tweet right before it goes live. This is not an editing feature often requested by Twitter users. “This is not an edit button, but an opportunity to view and review your tweet before posting it for the world to see,” the company said.
