WeChat: The Chinese Blueprint for Elon Musk’s Twitter Vision?

Twitter’s recent partnership with eToro has the potential to propel the social media platform into the realm of finance, much like WeChat, the Chinese powerhouse that offers a multitude of services including financial products. This new feature will enable Twitter users to access and trade stocks, cryptocurrencies, and other financial assets directly through the platform, aligning with Elon Musk’s vision of transforming Twitter into a “super app” that can rival WeChat.

WeChat, a dominant player in China, has seamlessly integrated various services such as messaging, mobile payments, e-commerce, and financial products. Its wealth management platform allows users to invest in stocks, funds, and insurance. Integration with third-party financial services, such as Alipay and WeChat Pay, makes transactions within the app possible. With over 1 billion monthly active users, WeChat’s reach is primarily in China but is also growing globally.

In comparison, Twitter’s partnership with eToro signifies the platform’s intent to expand its financial capabilities. With this collaboration, Twitter’s cashtags feature will cover more instruments and asset classes, allowing users to view market charts and buy and sell assets from eToro directly. This marks a significant business deal for Twitter since Elon Musk took over as CEO.

Elon Musk has expressed his desire for Twitter to become “the biggest financial institution in the world.” In his words during a Morgan Stanley conference, Musk envisions Twitter as an app where users can transfer funds and earn interest on their money. This ambitious plan draws similarities with WeChat’s extensive range of financial services and features.

Yoni Assia, eToro’s CEO, sees the partnership with Twitter as an opportunity to reach new audiences and better connect the brands of Twitter and eToro. He highlights the popularity of “Fintwit,” or financial Twitter, where users actively seek breaking news and updates on stocks and other assets.

In conclusion, Twitter’s partnership with eToro and Elon Musk’s vision for the platform showcase an ambitious plan to compete with established super apps like WeChat. By expanding its financial capabilities, Twitter aims to transform itself into a one-stop platform for users to access and trade various financial assets, similar to the services offered by WeChat. However, only time will tell if Twitter can successfully make this transition and achieve its goal of becoming the “biggest financial institution in the world.”