billionaire Elon Musk has been open about its plan to transform social media platform X into an all-in-one app that includes payments since acquiring the company for $44 billion in 2022.
According to a new report and commentary from X CEO, the plan could be closer to reality Linda Yaccarino.
What happened: Social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, currently generates most of its revenue from advertising and some from premium membership subscriptions.
Musk would like to add more features to X, including shopping and payment capabilities, which could help diversify the platform and its revenue streams.
A tweet from an app researcher Nima Owji has sparked speculation that the launch of X-Payments could happen soon, as TechCrunch reported.
Owji said X added a “Payments” button to the navigation bar. The researcher also found references to “transactions, balances, and transfers” while examining the new payment features.
Musk’s plans include allowing users to send payments to other users through the app and also store money in their X accounts.
According to TechCrunch, X Payments recently received a license for North Dakota, giving the company now coverage in 33 states. The goal of having money transfer licenses in all 50 states could remain a key goal before launch.
In addition, X held a general meeting with employees when the company announced that lawsuits had been filed against several companies and the Global Alliance for Responsible Media over an alleged boycott of the platform.
As The Verge reported, Yaccarino told employees during the general meeting that key features like X payments and shopping on X, as well as a “shift to video,” were exciting developments.
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Why it is important: The introduction of X-payments could increase engagement on the platform and bring Musk’s own social network closer to being a general-purpose app.
The introduction of X-payments or an official release date could also cause the price of Dogecoin DOGE/USD to get a boost. Musk’s beloved cryptocurrency has often skyrocketed in connection with talks about payments on the platform.
While there is no guarantee that Dogecoin or other cryptocurrencies will be linked to X Payments, speculation suggests that this could be a feature at launch or in the future.
Dogecoin has often skyrocketed in response to Musk’s takeover of the social media platform and received another boost when he temporarily replaced Twitter’s blue bird logo with the Dogecoin logo.
The possible imminent launch of X-payments would be consistent with what Musk said ArkInvest CEO Cathie Wood during an interview in December.
“I think we actually have the majority of states,” Musk said at the time.
Musk said the company is waiting for the final broadcast licenses and it is irrelevant to launch payments without approval in New York and California. According to the TechCrunch report, the company has a license for California but not New York.
Musk estimated at the time that X would receive the licenses and come to market in mid-2024.
With the introduction of X-Payments, the social media platform could compete with several online payment companies, including PayPal Holdings PYPLof which Musk was previously the CEO and largest shareholder.
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