Apps & Consumer
X moves all US creator payouts to X Money
X will process all U.S. creator payouts through its own X Money service instead of Stripe, starting Wednesday, with instant payments replacing the old two-week cycle.
Elon Musk’s social network X said Wednesday that starting immediately, all of its U.S. creator payouts — from both the Original Content Rewards Program and creators’ subscriptions — will be handled through X Money, the app’s own payments service, rather than Stripe.
The switch means payments are instant, removing the wait until the end of a billing cycle or the $30 minimum threshold that previously applied; X’s documentation states that payments were processed every two weeks under the old system. The announcement’s wording suggests U.S. creators no longer have another payout option — a company representative confirmed to TechCrunch that the change is required for creators in the U.S., while creators outside the country will remain on Stripe.
The shift follows other changes to X’s creator programs. On September 7, X will retire its Creator Revenue Sharing Program, which stopped accepting new members last month, moving creators to the Original Content Rewards Program instead. X Money itself began supporting creator payouts earlier this month, and the service — part of Musk’s broader plan to make X an “everything app” — also offers a bank card with 3% cash back, instant payments, free ATM withdrawals, and other digital banking services. X Money is not a bank; accounts are held at the FDIC-insured Cross River Bank.
Creator payouts will also count toward the direct deposit requirements X Money users need to meet for its higher annual percentage yield: X Premium subscribers currently get a boosted 6% rate, compared with the standard 4%. X said it will issue a 1099-NEC tax form for individuals receiving creator payouts, while for LLCs it will collect the organization’s W-9 information to ensure the forms are accurate.
Why it matters
The mandatory switch gives X a captive funnel of creator payouts into X Money’s banking features — including the direct-deposit requirement for its higher interest rate — reinforcing Musk’s push to turn X into a full financial app, not just a social network.