Elon Musk’s XMoney in Beta Test with Visa

Elon Musk is set to unveil a new digital payments platform called XMoney in April during its beta phase. The announcement comes nearly a year after then-XCEO Linda Yaccarino referenced the app as an “Everything App,” akin to China’s WeChat, which amalgamates messaging, social networking, shopping, and numerous other services into one application.

In a recent social media post, Musk, CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX, hinted at early access for users without specifying exact dates. XMoney will function similarly to PayPal, Venmo, or Zelle by facilitating peer-to-peer transactions via Visa Direct, the card issuer’s digital payment network. Users can also link their debit cards directly to an XMoney account for seamless payments within the platform.

A teaser from actor William Shatner of “Star Trek” fame added intrigue with a preview of early beta access invitations, though it was linked to a charitable initiative rather than full details on the app’s capabilities. Shatner offered 100 such opportunities for $1,000 donations towards XMoney.

XMoney is expected to debut in the United States and already holds licenses to operate across 40 U.S. states and Washington D.C. Despite some regulatory pushback, including from New York authorities who are concerned about potential anti-competitive practices, this new venture could leverage Musk’s robust understanding of payments systems, commerce, and generative AI.

While initial details remain limited, tech analysts are optimistic given Musk’s history in the industry and recent endeavors like X.com. Analyst Scott Devitt, a Wedbush Securities expert on internet and e-commerce, noted that “anything Elon focuses on has a good chance of success.”