Elon Musk, the tech tycoon, bought Twitter on Monday, and this move is significant not only for ‘free expression but also for cryptocurrency.
Because the world’s most potent crypto influencer now controls an influencing platform with a reach of just under 300 million individuals (bots too).
Elon has long been a proponent of cryptocurrency and Web3 technology. He frequently discusses cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether and the meme coin Doge.
Dogecoin
As word of Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter circulated, the Tesla-endorsed joke coin Dogecoin saw a 27% increase in price.
By the end of the day, Twitter’s stock had risen 5.6 %. At the time of writing, the meme coin had been increased from $0.12 to $0.16. Musk is the firm’s largest stakeholder, owning 9.2 % of the corporation.
The purchase of Twitter and the surge in Dogecoin prices are unrelated. However, the announcement has sparked a lot of speculation in the cryptocurrency markets, with investors hopeful that Dogecoin would have a future with Twitter.
“The speculation is that advertisers could be able to pay DOGE for commercials and other users on Twitter,” Kryotomon’s CMO, Tomar Nuni, said earlier this month.
When Tesla announced the possibility of paying for its items with DOGE, we saw something similar happen. So it’s possible that Musk’s businesses and stakeholdings, like Tesla, would begin to accept cryptocurrency.”
In a tweet earlier this month, even Elon Musk hinted about Doge as a possible payment option for Twitter Blue — the subscription-based version of Twitter with premium services.
Tesla’s online goods store already takes Doge as payment. In another tweet from May 2021, he mentioned working with Dogecoin devs to promote adoption and development.
Dogecoin is the tenth most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization, and it is named after the Doge meme from 2013. It was established as a parody of cryptocurrency to ridicule the volatility of Bitcoin.
Last year, the joke of cryptocurrency rose to attention after Tesla CEO Elon Musk embraced it in tweets. Elon Musk was dubbed the “Doge Father” in 2021, and his tweets had a significant impact on the cryptocurrency’s price swings. Dogecoin soared to 67 cents in May 2021, riding high on Musk’s posts.
Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey stepped down in November of last year to focus on his payments startup, Block, previously known as Square.
The rechristening reflects Dorsey’s cryptocurrency and blockchain ambitions. On the other hand, Tesla has been one of the biggest corporate bitcoin buyers. Musk’s inclination toward cryptocurrencies and how he prioritizes them in the future will be a significant vector in determining whether Twitter will see more crypto native features added to its platform.
Bitcoin’s censorship resistance aligns with Musk’s utopian vision of a free speech world. Musk said in a statement on Monday, “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.”
Crypto Scam Bots
According to Musk, bots, particularly crypto fraud bots, are the bane of Twitter.
Musk’s business empire is infamous for attracting bots, including bots supporting his electric vehicle company, Tesla, and targeting Musk’s opponents.
He has not stated that he would prefer to regulate such bots, but he has proposed targeting scammy bots advocating for bitcoin scams.
“If our Twitter bid succeeds, we will defeat the spam bots or die trying!!” Musk tweeted that he wants to “authenticate all real persons.”
It should be noted that Twitter already has strong rules against spam, and it bans things like attempting to artificially influence conversations on the platform with fake accounts and bots, so the question remains how exactly Musk would strengthen an already robust anti-spam policy?
Web3 Adoption
Elon Musk has long been an outspoken supporter of Web3 technologies and decentralization. Experts believe that Musk will be able to push decentralization to the mainstream with Twitter at his disposal and that his plans to open-source the Twitter algorithm code will boost crypto confidence.
Expert’s Take
“Though Musk has been a strong promoter of crypto and decentralization, his tweets have the capacity to affect markets,” Sharat Chandra, crypto specialist and Vice President, Research and Strategy at Web3 platform EarthID, told Business Today.
With Twitter, Chandra believes Musk’s influence can define the crypto verse narrative. “With Twitter at his disposal, Musk’s increased social media reach can play a double-edged role in molding the crypto verse narrative.”
As announced by Elon Musk, Open-source Twitter algorithms would strengthen trust in the site and combat the threat of spambots. However, how this is handled in a nonpartisan manner will be crucial.”
Conclusion
With Musk as owner, there are some big unknowns, ranging from its content moderation policies to the potential reinstatement of previously banned users — including former President Donald Trump.
Only time can tell how this significant change affects the crypto industry, cryptos such as Bitcoin or tether (USDT) and social platform as a whole.
