X hires crypto designer as payments push grows

Elon Musk’s X has hired crypto product veteran Benji Taylor as head of design, as the platform accelerates its push into payments and financial services.

Taylor, formerly chief product officer at Aave Labs and head of design at Coinbase’s Base network, will lead design across X, xAI and SpaceX.

His background includes building the self-custody wallet Family, later acquired by Aave, positioning him as a key hire ahead of X Money’s planned rollout.

The appointment comes as X prepares to launch X Money, which will offer peer-to-peer payments, bank deposits, debit cards and cashback across more than 40 US states.

X product lead Nikita Bier said he had long followed Taylor’s work, calling one of his previous products among the best designed he had seen.

While Taylor’s experience spans decentralised finance and wallets, X has not confirmed any crypto or blockchain integration within X Money at this stage.

The hire nevertheless signals that crypto-native design expertise may play a role in shaping X’s broader financial ecosystem as it evolves beyond social media.