Elon Musk's X Inches Closer To Payment Features With Pennsylvania License

Elon Musk’s social media platform X has just made a significant stride towards offering payment services, having obtained a money-transmitter license from Pennsylvania.

What Happened: Reuters revealed that X, previously known as Twitter, was granted a license by Pennsylvania, a crucial step in its journey towards enabling money transfers. This unannounced nod, given on Monday, allows users to transfer money among themselves, akin to PayPal’s Venmo.

After purchasing Twitter in October 2022, Musk has voiced plans to revolutionize the platform into an “everything app”, mirroring China’s WeChat. Musk informed X employees of his vision for users to conduct their “entire financial life” on the platform, with new features expected by the end of next year, The Verge reported.

To offer payment services across the U.S., X requires approval from each state, a process that could stretch up to 18 months and cost millions, as per Aaron Klein of the Brookings Institution. Other states that have authorized X for money-transmitter licenses include Arizona, Georgia, Wyoming, and Maryland.

Entering the payments sphere could diversify X’s business, which has experienced challenges following Musk’s controversial management and statements. Trust from users and regulators will be pivotal for X’s payment ambition, said Sabrina Howell, associate professor at NYU Stern School of Business.

Despite difficulties under Musk’s leadership, X secured its first state money-transmitter license in New Hampshire in June, a process started by Twitter before Musk’s takeover.

See Also: Elon Musk’s Loss Is Mark Zuckerberg’s Gain: Disney, Comcast Reportedly Increase Ad Spending On Instagram

Why It Matters: Musk’s vision for X as an “everything app” started with acquiring Twitter in October. The platform was officially renamed toX in April signaling Musk’s pursuit of a super app goal.

The name X has been a long-time fascination of Musk dating back to 1999 when he founded X.com to disrupt the financial sector With the recent Pennsylvania license X takes another step toward the realization of Musk’s vision.

Photo by Frederic Legrand – COMEO on Shutterstock

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