X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, is reportedly on Technology News of launching its own payments service, according to claims made by an independent app researcher on social media. Since Elon Musk took over the platform, it has experienced significant transformations, including a new logo, a name and domain change, the elimination of conventional verification methods, and the introduction of an artificial intelligence chatbot named Grok. Musk has expressed his desire to evolve the platform into an “everything app” that goes beyond microblogging by incorporating services such as payments, shopping, and job seeking.
This recent information hints at further progress towards achieving Musk’s ambitious vision for the platform.
Payments on X
The potential payments feature was uncovered by researcher Nima Owji (@nima_owji), who is known for revealing unreleased features on the platform. In a post, Owji suggested that X could soon enable users to access payment services via a feature labeled Payments. A screenshot shared by Owji indicates that this feature may be positioned in the left-side navigation panel, positioned beneath the Bookmarks section.
BREAKING: X Payments is coming soon! pic.twitter.com/8JBIHjHOls
— Nima Owji (@nima_owji) August 5, 2024
In a discussion with TechCrunch, Owji mentioned the presence of references to features such as “transactions, balance, and transfer” within the payment service.
This latest development aligns with Musk’s earlier aspirations for X, expressed during a December conversation with Cathie Wood, CEO of Ark Invest. Musk suggested that the payment service could potentially launch around “mid-2024.” An X blog post from January 9 outlined the company’s objective to establish peer-to-peer (P2P) payments as a key goal for 2024. According to the platform, implementing payment services would create new commercial opportunities and enhance user engagement.
In line with its strategy, X Payments, a subsidiary of the main platform, has secured money transmitter licenses in 33 US states, including recent approvals in Alabama, the District of Columbia, and California. Should this service launch, X could emerge as a formidable competitor to PayPal, the payment service established following the 2000 merger of Musk’s X.com and Confinity.
