SocialFi was supposed to change how creators make money online. Instead, it became one of crypto’s most predictable failures.
Now, attention is elsewhere. X, is rolling out creator-focused monetization tools that borrow SocialFi’s best ideas… all without the crypto baggage.
SocialFi started the fire
Creators want direct payments now, and fans are willing to support them financially. What didn’t work previously, was that SocialFi platforms attracted traders, not communities.
Friend.tech peaked near 80,000 daily users before falling below 250. Lens saw activity drop after brief growth spurts. Across the sector, studies showed that more than 90% of users leave within 30 days.
Instead of rewarding creators for content, most users bet on price appreciation.
X’s creator push changed the math
The platform is approaching the problem from a very different angle. In January 2026, the platform declared this the “year of the creator,” after closing 2025 with its highest payouts since launching monetization. X has more than doubled its revenue-sharing pool and updated how payouts are calculated. Creator earnings are now based on verified home timeline impressions.
Source: X
X has also noted that longer, higher-effort formats like articles may be weighted more heavily than short posts. Views from higher-tier Premium subscribers carry greater value, while the platform says it is increasing efforts to detect fraud and fake engagement.
What does this mean for decentralized social media?
X already has scale, creators, audiences, and payments built in. While decentralized social platforms struggled to keep tens of thousands of users, X operates at hundreds of millions. If in-app currencies or “Twitter Coins” arrive next, SocialFi will lose its strongest argument.
Creator monetization no longer needs crypto to work. And if X proves that at scale, decentralized social media will be left with very few users and collect dust.
Final Thoughts
- X’s creator payouts are pushing up while SocialFi collapses.
- If “Twitter Coins” arrive next, distribution will decide the winner.