Kaito Token Drops as X Blocks InfoFi Rewards

• Lyla Velez
• January 15, 2026
• News
• 0 Comments

X, formerly known as Twitter, updated its API policy on January 15, 2026, banning InfoFi rewards, directly impacting the Kaito token.

The event is significant as it illustrates a strategic shift by X to enhance its platform’s quality, causing immediate repercussions in the InfoFi sector and cryptocurrency market.

X, under Nikita Bier’s leadership, prohibited InfoFi applications from incentivizing user posts, revoking their API access effective January 15, 2026. Kaito’s token (KAITO) dropped 14-20%, declining from approximately $0.70 to $0.56-$0.57.

Kaito announced a pivot to Kaito Studio, abandoning the permissionless distribution model. Stakeholders within Kaito highlighted the shift towards a tier-based marketing platform, aligning with X’s new policies. A Kaito representative stated, “A fully permissionless distribution system is no longer viable, nor aligned with the needs of high-quality brands, serious content creators, or X as a platform.”

InfoFi market witnessed a broader decline, with COOKIE tokens dropping 13% to $0.038, while the sector’s market cap decreased over 11% to $367M. Other cryptocurrencies, such as ETH and BTC, remained unaffected.

The policy shift may result in reduced investments in InfoFi applications as stakeholders evaluate their strategies within X’s ecosystem. Regulators are closely watching the situation, with no official statements yet reported. Kaito lost a crucial platform for user engagement, compelling entities to reconsider reward-based models.