X is now licensed for payment processing in a dozen US states

Elon Musk is moving guardant pinch his plans to move nan institution formerly known arsenic Twitter, now called X, into an “everything app” that includes its ain payments system. The institution successful precocious November was granted 3 further money transmitter licenses successful nan U.S. states of South Dakota (on November 27), Kansas (on November 28) and Wyoming (on November 30), bringing nan full number of states wherever nan institution is allowed to prosecute successful money transfers to 12.

The different states wherever nan institution had antecedently been granted a money transmitter licence see Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. All of nan states were licensed this year, starting pinch New Hampshire connected June 29.

Arizona, Michigan and Missouri were added successful July followed by Georgia, Maryland and Rhode Island successful August, and Iowa and Mississippi successful September. The registrations are associated pinch a business named “X Payments LLC,” formerly “Twitter Payments LLC,” which will run nan money transportation operations astatine X. (The sanction of nan licence whitethorn vary, but each would let X to process payments aliases move money successful nan state.)

Musk confirmed nan additions successful a station connected X, successful response to an article by The Street which noted nan November 27 summation of South Dakota. The Street’s reporting indicated nan institution had only been registered successful 10 states, according to nan Nationwide Multistate Licensing System’s database. Now, nan database is showing nan astir caller additions, arsenic well.

“Progress,” was Musk’s only remark connected nan caller registrations.

However, Musk has antecedently spoken astir his plans to morph X into a payments platform, having earlier elaborate his imagination for nan early of nan institution soon aft nan acquisition. He has described Twitter, now X, arsenic a spot wherever users would beryllium capable to nonstop money to others connected nan platform, and extract their costs to authenticated slope accounts, and possibly later, a high-yield money marketplace relationship that would promote group to support their rate successful accounts pinch X. This scheme would put X into title pinch PayPal, a institution Musk is crediting pinch co-founding via its merger pinch his X.com. With Twitter, Musk is hoping to erstwhile again complete nan imagination he had for X.com arsenic a disruptor to nan existing banking system. Whether aliases not that move will besides impact crypto is yet to beryllium determined, but it’s worthy noting that a money transmitter licence would beryllium required if X were to support cryptocurrencies.

Payments are besides tied into X’s broader move into nan creator economy, wherever X users pinch astatine slightest 500 followers and 5 cardinal integrated impressions connected their posts complete nan past 3 months tin go eligible for ads gross sharing.

Of course, X’s expertise to monetize via ads has taken a downturn successful caller days, arsenic an advertiser exodus was prompted by Musk’s endorsement of an antisemitic station connected nan level and reports that brands’ campaigns were appearing adjacent to dislike speech. As a result, X has mislaid respective larger advertisers, including Apple, Disney, IBM, Paramount, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, Comcast/NBCU, Walmart and others. The institution besides mislaid a deal pinch Paris Hilton’s 11:11 Media, which would person seen nan celeb tout unrecorded audio, unrecorded video and unrecorded shopping connected X. Musk lashed out astatine Hilton aft nan woody went south, but nan departures could spell problem for X’s monetization plans, and therefor its creator system and payments ambitions.

The institution said it would focus connected mini business advertisers successful nan adjacent word and is besides readying to make Musk’s caller AI, Grok, disposable to X’s paid subscribers arsenic different root of revenue.