Twitter has announced rolling out its tipping feature now called Tips to everyone with more payment options to choose from-even crypto. The initial rollout will be for people on iOS and later bring Tips to Android users over the coming weeks.
According to Twitter, “People already drop links to their payment profiles in their bios and in their Tweets. Tips makes this easier to do, offering one fixed spot, right on your profile, where you can link to your Cash App, Patreon, Venmo and other platforms where people can support you.”
“Whether you want to tip your favorite account because you adore their commentary, send some love to an emerging comedy creator for their hilarious Tweets, help a small business owner through a difficult time, give to an important cause — whatever you want to support, Tips is here to help you do it.”
Once an account has turned on Tips, the icon next to the Follow button will be seen on the profile page. By tapping the icon, it will provide the list of payment platforms available so far including Bandcamp, Cash App, Chipper, Patreon, Razarpay, Wealthsimple Casg and Venmo.
Twitter is adding some new services to the list: GoFundMe – online fundraising platform and PicPay – a Brazilian mobile payments platform. Once users tap the service they want to use, they’ll be taken off Twitter to the selected app to send funds. On Android, tips can also be sent within Spaces. Twitter takes no cut.
In addition to the services currently enabled through Tips, people can now seamlessly tip with Bitcoin using Strike – a payments application built on the Bitcoin Lightning Network that allows people to send and receive Bitcoin. Strike promises instant and free payments globally.
Currently, Strike is available to people in El Salvador and the U.S. (excluding Hawaii and New York). People in the eligible markets will have to sign up for a Strike account and add their Strike username to receive Bitcoin tips over the Lightning Network. Twitter users can use any Bitcoin Lightning wallet to send tips to someone’s Strike account.
Twitter wants users of the app to have access to pathways to get paid. Digital currencies that encourage more people to participate in the economy and help people send each other money across borders and with as little friction as possible.
The company said, “When you enable Tips on your profile, you can now also add your Bitcoin addresses. People can copy your address and paste it into a Bitcoin wallet of their choice to send you a payment directly.”
“You must be 18+ years old to enable Tips or send someone a tip and agree to our new General Tipping policy, which we’ve designed to keep people safe on our service. This policy will guide our enforcement actions and, as with all of our rules, we’ll continue to publicly iterate on this work as more people use Tips globally.”
