X Launches Crypto Trading Through Interactive Brokers and Gemini

X, the social media company formerly known as Twitter, has launched a feature that lets U.S. users trade Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies through partner platforms Interactive Brokers (NASDAQ: IBKR) and Gemini (NASDAQ: GEMI).

The mechanics are simple. Users tap a cashtag such as "$BTC" on X, hit a "trade" button, and are redirected to Interactive Brokers or Gemini, where they can buy and sell digital assets. The trades happen on the partners' infrastructure, not on X itself.

The move marks the first step in X's broader plan to offer stock and crypto trading directly on its platform. Elon Musk, who leads the privately held company, has said he wants X to become an "everything app" complete with banking features.

The groundwork is already in place. X currently displays real-time prices and charts for a range of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. The trading feature turns passive market-watching into a transaction path, keeping users one tap away from executing a trade.

The audience is substantial. The platform counts 245 million global users across all devices, and it has long functioned as a hub for crypto discussion. That intersection matters for market behavior: posts on X about Bitcoin and other digital assets by influencers such as Musk have been known to boost prices instantly. Folding a trade button into that same feed shortens the distance between sentiment and execution to a single screen.

For Interactive Brokers and Gemini, the partnership delivers distribution to one of the largest crypto-focused audiences on social media. For X, it delivers a foothold in financial services without the regulatory burden of building brokerage rails from scratch — the partners handle custody and execution while X owns the funnel.

The launch also aligns with Musk's stated ambition. An "everything app" modeled on the Chinese super-app concept would bundle payments, banking, and investing alongside social features. Crypto trading is the most natural entry point for X given its existing user base, and stocks appear to be next on the roadmap under the company's stated plan for direct trading on the platform.

Bitcoin traded right around $86,000 on Sept. 22, according to the source report, providing the market backdrop against which X's users can now act on the price chatter they see in their feeds.

The feature is currently limited to U.S. users, leaving the question of international expansion open. If X extends the partnership model to equities and to markets beyond the United States, the company would move closer to the everything-app vision — and deepen its revenue streams beyond advertising.