Elon Musk’s vision of creating an “everything app” is taking form quite nicely. This comes after X (formerly Twitter) announced a partnership with Visa to power its upcoming ‘X Money’ digital payment system.
This collaboration will be X’s first major step into financial services, with the platform aiming to enable peer-to-peer payments and digital wallet functionality for its users.
The partnership will leverage Visa Direct, the payment giant’s real-time money transfer infrastructure, to provide three core functions: loading money into ‘X Money’ digital wallets, connecting users’ debit cards for peer-to-peer payments, and facilitating instant transfers back to bank accounts.
While the launch date hasn’t been announced, X CEO Linda Yaccarino has indicated that this is just the first of several major ‘X Money’ announcements planned for this year.
Behind the scenes, X has been laying the groundwork for this financial expansion through its X Payments subsidiary, securing money transmitter licenses in 41 US states. However, app researchers suggest that X Money’s initial launch may not cover all US states immediately.
Musk’s long-standing interest in financial services actually dates back to his late 1990s startup, X.com, which eventually merged with PayPal. This new venture puts X in direct competition with established players like Venmo, Zelle, and Apple’s wallet service, a move that will potentially diversify the platform’s revenue streams beyond advertising.
For Elon Musk, who has spoken about turning X into “the largest financial institution in the world,” the partnership represents more than just adding a payment feature. The billionaire has implied that users might earn “extremely high yield” on money stored in their X accounts, though specific details about such features remain under wraps.
That said, the ambitious project faces several challenges, including a competitive landscape where social media giants like Meta have already integrated various services into their platforms. Additionally, X’s recent controversies regarding content moderation and advertiser relations could impact user trust in its financial services.
The platform may also need to maneuver regulatory scrutiny, especially now that super apps are facing increasing attention from US regulators who are concerned about market competition.
