X Bans InfoFi: A Game of Tolls and Ecosystem Transformation

In early January 2026, the crypto community experienced a sudden “earthquake.” X (formerly Twitter) issued an announcement directly cutting off the API access for InfoFi applications, causing the once-popular “post-to-mine” ecosystem to instantly fall into crisis. For participants relying on platform incentive mechanisms, this was not just a policy adjustment but a complete rejection of the toll fee model.

Billions in toll fees also fail to retain users: X’s major shift in API policy

Nikita Bier, head of X product and Solana ecosystem advisor, officially announced that the platform will revise its developer API policies, no longer allowing applications that reward users for posting, explicitly targeting InfoFi for regulation.

Nikita straightforwardly explained: such incentive mechanisms have led to an influx of AI spam messages and ineffective responses on the platform. X has revoked API access for these applications, believing that once bots lose their reward motivation, user experience should improve rapidly. He even “considerately” suggested that developers of terminated accounts switch to Meta’s Threads or the decentralized social platform Bluesky.

More notably, even though InfoFi applications contributed millions of dollars in toll fees annually to X, the platform resolutely abandoned this revenue. “We don’t want this money,” Nikita said plainly, emphasizing that user experience is the current strategic priority. This indicates that, compared to the short-term gains from toll fees, the long-term health of the platform’s ecosystem is viewed as a more valuable asset.

This also marks the official end of the InfoFi model parasitic on the X ecosystem. Over the past few months, X has undertaken sweeping reforms in content and traffic distribution, including adjusting algorithm weights and increasing income for high-quality creators. The true target of X’s move is not simply the InfoFi model itself but those low-quality contents that severely dilute platform value and drive away genuine users.

Projects collectively turning around: from incentive models to strategic upgrades

As X’s API policies tighten, the narrative of InfoFi faces a cold wave. According to the latest data, the circulating market cap of the InfoFi sector has fallen to $104.7 million, with most tokens experiencing double-digit declines. Even Kaito’s Yapybaras NFT floor price has not escaped, experiencing a sharp plunge.

Under survival pressure, major ecosystem projects have announced strategic transformations.

Kaito founder Yu Hu stated that the company will gradually terminate the Yaps incentive leaderboard system and launch a new Kaito Studio platform. This decision stems from concerns over low-quality content and the broader trend of the crypto industry shifting from high-frequency global distribution to precise marketing. Kaito Studio will adopt a layered traditional marketing approach, connecting brands with high-quality creators through top-tier analytics tools, covering platforms like X, YouTube, TikTok, and expanding into finance and AI fields.

Meanwhile, Cookie DAO, after negotiations with the X team, decided to immediately shut down the Snaps platform and all creator activities. Despite complex negotiations involving already paid fees and promised rewards, Cookie DAO stated it would communicate with each project on the basis of fairness. The platform has taken snapshots of all active activities, and Cookie Pro, scheduled to launch in the first quarter, will become the new focus, concentrating on real-time crypto market intelligence tools.

Interestingly, based on project team statements, this policy adjustment was not a black swan event. The teams had already anticipated the shift and preemptively laid out plans for transformation. This has also sparked controversy in the market—some voices question whether projects had prior knowledge and pre-sold.

For example, Kaito’s multi-signature contract address recently transferred a total of 24 million KAITO tokens (about $13.31 million) to 5 addresses. Crypto influencer “vasucrypto” detected that addresses related to the Kaito team recently transferred 5 million KAITO to Binance, possibly for cashing out. Coincidentally, Kaito’s staking unlocks also peaked recently, with 1.1 million KAITO tokens about to be unlocked, with a 7-day unbonding period. These series of timing coincidences have led the market to speculate about the team’s prior strategic planning.

Awakening of the content ecosystem: the end of low-quality prosperity and platform dilemma

On a deeper level, X’s cleanup signifies a reshaping of the crypto content ecosystem. For X, heavily dependent on advertising and subscription revenue, facing slowing user growth, low traffic monetization efficiency, and rising competitors, strategic adjustment is a matter of survival.

The original intention of the InfoFi model was to incentivize creators to produce high-quality content through token rewards, which once briefly shined. But this mechanism gradually became distorted—many profit-seekers, in pursuit of incentives, produced大量低质、重复的垃圾信息。这种虚假的流量繁荣不仅让内容变得索然无味，更让真正有深度的价值内容被噪音淹没，加速了真实用户的流失。

X的“封禁”对于厌倦垃圾信息的加密社群而言，无疑是一道“噪音过滤器”。时间线终于可以喘口气。

然而，加密推特热度下滑的原因并非完全源于InfoFi。整个加密产业的低迷周期、YouTube加密内容浏览量跌至2021年1月以来最低，也表明市场正经历调整期。

但无论如何，InfoFi模式的终点是提升加密内容可读性、回归内容本质的必经之路。对于InfoFi项目而言，当寄生于Web2巨头流量的捷径被切断，如何建立基于真实价值流动的SocialFi机制，成为亟待破解的难题。过路费所代表的单向激励模式已成历史，如何在新规则下创造真实价值，才是生态参与者面临的真正挑战。