X Introduces Smart Cashtags: A Game-Changer for Crypto and Stock Tracking

The X team is developing a feature called Smart Cashtags, which will link cryptocurrency and stock tickers in posts with real-time market data, according to product head Nikita Bir.

«X is the premier source of financial news: hundreds of billions of dollars are invested based on what people read here,» he stated.

When a «smart cashtag» is clicked, a page will open displaying quotes, price charts, and a stream of posts mentioning the asset. In some instances, tokens will be identified by the smart contract address.

The launch of this feature is scheduled for February. Bir noted that the company is currently analyzing community feedback.

The top executive also hinted at a potential trading implementation. It is expected that transactions will be possible through connected non-custodial wallets or centralized exchange widgets.

In June, former X CEO Linda Yaccarino announced that trading and investment tools would arrive in the app, but she left the company just a month later.

Elon Musk has repeatedly expressed his intentions to transform the platform into a financial «super app,» including the integration of cryptocurrencies.

At the end of 2023, the billionaire mentioned that the company anticipated obtaining licenses to launch a payment service by mid-2024; however, as of this writing, the service has yet to be activated.

The announcement of Smart Cashtags comes amid ongoing disputes within the community. The conflict was sparked by a now-deleted post from Bir, in which he criticized the behavior of participants in the crypto segment on X.

He stated that the section of the social network dedicated to digital assets is «killing itself.» He refuted the popular belief that an abundance of replies to posts aids in account promotion, calling this notion a myth.

«Each of your posts consumes part of your daily audience reach. […] As a result, [crypto-X] wastes all its reach on replies like ‘gm’ hundreds of times, and when it finally publishes something substantive, such as a project announcement, only three people see it. [Crypto-X] is dying from self-inflicted wounds, not because of the algorithm,» he asserted.

Users deemed Bir’s remarks contradictory, as the X team had previously encouraged active engagement to boost reach.

Critics believe that the top executive’s proposed «attention economy» concept undermines the platform’s foundation. They argue that the core value of the social network lies in the interaction among its members.

«The very idea that active communication in comments could diminish the reach of your own posts, and that ‘attention resources’ need to be ‘conserved’, directly contradicts the fundamental principle of the platform as a social network,» commented a user under the pseudonym meta.

A similar opinion was voiced by an analyst using the nickname KALEO, who is convinced that limiting the frequency of replies contradicts the essence of X. The potential introduction of such limits is already causing concern among users.

«Imagine if streamers were restricted in how many times they could respond in their chat,» the expert analogized.

Amid the conflict, members of the crypto community have created a new meme—“Nikita Boar”—which Bir himself shared.

Decentralized exchanges are already flooded with corresponding meme coins. At the time of writing, the market capitalization of the largest of these, under the ticker BOAR, exceeds $318 million.

It is worth noting that in November, X introduced a geolocation feature. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin described it as «risky.»