X, formerly Twitter, secures its 15th money-transmitter license, paving the way for new payment features،
X (formerly Twitter) has been going unnoticed for some time now, with occasional incidents in the news, as when it has given a price reduction to verified companies or forgot to pay millions of bonuses (oops, this happens) . However, it now appears that the social media platform is poised to bring Elon Musk's dream of becoming “the app for everything” to life. Reuters, X has obtained a money transfer license from Utah, becoming the 15th US state to give the green light as the company explores the possibility of offering payment features. This license allows X to function like PayPal's Venmo, facilitating money transfers and potentially allowing users to send money to each other.
Since taking over Twitter in October 2022, Musk has been on a mission to transform the platform into an “app for everything”, similar to the popular Chinese app WeChat. WeChat not only allows users to send messages, but also enables functions such as hailing a taxi and making payments to merchants.
In keeping with Elon Musk's vision, X obtained its initial money transporter license in New Hampshire in June 2023. The approval streak continued with nods from Pennsylvania, Arizona , Georgia, Maryland and Michigan.
X is still awaiting approval from several other states, including California, New York and Texas. The end goal is to obtain licenses in all 50 states, giving X the green light to offer money transactions to users nationwide. “We want money on X to flow as freely as information and conversations“, Linda Yoccarino, CEO of X, once said.
Getting into payments could be a way for X to spice things up beyond just digital ads, especially after taking a hit under Musk's reign. Some big advertisers, including Apple, have hit the pause button or said goodbye to the platform. For what? Well, the fact that Musk agreed with an X user who floated an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory last year might have something to do with it.
After Twitter transitioned to X under Musk's ownership, a series of changes were made, bringing many new features. In the first year since Musk's takeover, we've seen longer posts, the inclusion of video and audio calls, the launch of various new premium subscriptions, and much more.
