Nikita Bier, X's head of product, recently made a statement that has left many wondering about the company's upcoming plans. 'Crypto has had a rough year, perhaps it's time to introduce something new to address the issues,' Bier wrote in a post that garnered over 677,000 views in a matter of hours.
This comment comes as Elon Musk's X Money is set to launch in April, offering features like peer-to-peer transfers, bank deposits, a debit card, and cashback rewards, all built in partnership with Visa and available in over 40 US states. Although the details of X Money's underlying technology remain unclear, it has been described as a fiat-based product with no confirmed cryptocurrency functionality. However, the company has not explicitly ruled out the use of blockchain technology, and the product's design overlaps with areas where cryptocurrency has been focused, such as instant payments and yield on dollar balances. The recent hiring of Benji Taylor, former Chief Product Officer at Aave and Head of Design at Base, further adds to the speculation.
Bier has expressed his admiration for Taylor's work, calling one of his previous products one of the best-designed he has seen. The question remains whether X will choose to compete with cryptocurrency or integrate it into its payments system.
For now, the ambiguity surrounding X's plans continues, leaving the cryptocurrency community to wonder if the next major development will come from within the industry or from external platforms like X.