X shifts US creator payouts from Stripe to X Money

Elon Musk’s social network X on Wednesday said that starting today, all of its U.S. creator payouts will be handled through X Money, the app’s payments service.

This includes payouts from both X’s Original Content Rewards Program and creators’ subscriptions, the company said in an update shared on X.

The benefit of this new payment system is that the payments are instant. There’s no waiting until the end of a billing cycle or a minimum threshold that has to be reached before the creator can access their money. Previously, payments were processed every two weeks, with a minimum payout of $30, X’s documentation states.

However, the announcement’s wording seems to indicate that there aren’t any other options for receiving payments on the platform, meaning X is forcing creators to use X Money even if they would have preferred the prior payout method, which was powered by Stripe.

X has been asked for clarification on the matter.

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. Creators are being shifted instead to the Original Content Rewards Program, which, as the name implies, puts a heavier emphasis on original content.

The company’s new payments service, X Money, began supporting creator payouts earlier this month. The payments offering, a part of Musk’s broader plan to make X an “everything app,” includes a bank card with 3% cashback, instant payments, free ATM withdrawals, and other digital banking services. However, X Money is not a bank itself; the accounts themselves are held at the FDIC-insured Cross River Bank.

X’s post said creator payouts will also count towards X Money users’ direct deposit requirements to receive the service’s better APY rate. Currently, the service’s website says X Premium users will get a boosted 6% rate, compared to the standard 4% rate.

In addition, X will issue a 1099-NEC for individuals receiving creator payouts. For LLCs, X will collect the organization’s W-9 information to ensure the 1099s are accurate, the company noted.