X (formerly Twitter) has been flying under the radar for a while now, with the occasional blip on the news scope, like when it gave verified businesses a price cut or forgot to cough up millions in bonuses (oops, it happens). However, now it seems the social media platform is inching closer to bringing Elon Musk’s dream of it becoming the “everything app” to life. According to Reuters, X has secured a money-transmitter license from Utah, marking the 15th US state to give the green light as the company delves into the possibility of offering payment features. This license allows X to operate like PayPal’s Venmo, facilitating money transfers and potentially allowing users to send money to one another.
Since taking over Twitter in October 2022, Musk has been on a mission to reshape the platform into an “everything app,” akin to the popular Chinese app WeChat. WeChat not only allows users to send messages but also enables functions like hailing a taxi and making payments to merchants.
In line with Musk’s vision, X snagged its initial state money-transmitter license in New Hampshire back 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 snag licenses from 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 conversation,” once X’s CEO, Linda Yoccarino, said.
Dipping its toes into payments might be X’s way of spicing things up beyond just digital ads, especially after taking a hit under Musk’s reign. Some bigwig advertisers, Apple included, hit the pause button or bid farewell to the platform. Why? Well, Musk agreeing with an X user spouting off an antisemitic conspiracy theory last year might have had something to do with it.
After the transition from Twitter to X under Musk’s ownership, a slew of changes has rolled out, bringing in a bunch of new features. In the first year post-Musk takeover, we saw longer post lengths, the inclusion of video and audio calls, the launch of various new premium subscriptions, and a whole lot more.
