Twitter has launched a new feature that allows users on the social network to tip each other, either in traditional currencies or in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

“We want everyone on Twitter to have access to ways to pay,” the company explained via blog post.

“Digital currencies that encourage more people to participate in the economy and help people send each other money across borders and with as little friction as possible – help us get there.”

While regular tips are now available to iOS-based Twitter users worldwide, crypto tips are only available to users in El Salvador and the US. For now, anyway.

Commenting on the news, Kraken Australia managing director Jonathan Miller said cryptocurrencies have had a fantastic year in terms of mainstream adoption.

“Twitter’s adoption of cryptocurrency tips is another giant leap forward – and perfectly aligned with the purpose of cryptocurrency: to allow users to support their favorite creators, quickly, with a currency that has the same value no matter where they are in the world” , he said.

Mr Miller said tipping was “just one of the major problems that cryptocurrency can solve” and that he was excited to see the next stages of Twitter’s entry into the world of digital payments.

The news follows earlier rumors that Twitter would begin accepting cryptocurrencies through an in-app tip feature, after a leaked screenshot suggested that the ability to link an ethereum or bitcoin wallet address to your Twitter account was in the works.

While Twitter themselves neither confirmed nor denied the rumor, Twitter’s product manager retweeted the screenshots with the coy caption: “coming soon.”

The move also comes amid Twitter’s broader focus on the creative economy and CEO Jack Dorsey’s own efforts to position himself at the forefront of the crypto space.

Publicly, Mr. Dorsey has suggested that Twitter will be a major element of Twitter’s business strategy going forward.

In a recent earnings call, he said that “if the Internet has a local currency, a global currency, we can move much faster with products like Super Follows, Commerce, Subscriptions, Tip Jar, and we can reach every single person on the planet because of this, rather than following a market-by-market approach.’

“I think that’s a big part of our future,” he said.