Elon Musk’s X receives money transmitter license in Utah By Reuters

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The brand new emblem of Twitter is seen on this illustration taken, July 24, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photograph

(Reuters) – Elon Musk’s social media platform X, previously often known as Twitter, on Monday acquired a money-transmitter license from Utah, the fifteenth U.S. state to grant approval as the corporate explores providing fee options.

Utah granted the approval on Friday, in response to the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System & Registry, a web based database.

It grants the corporate the power much like PayPal (NASDAQ:)’s Venmo, to facilitate cash transfers and makes approach for the corporate to permit customers to ship cash to at least one one other.

The push into funds may assist X diversify its enterprise past digital promoting, which has suffered setbacks since Musk took possession.

Some main advertisers paused their spending or fled the platform after Musk final yr agreed with an X consumer who espoused an antisemitic conspiracy concept. Talking at a New York Occasions DealBook occasion later that month, the billionaire CEO made a profane remark about manufacturers that had suspended their adverts on X.

Since buying Twitter in October 2022, Musk has mentioned he envisions transforming the corporate into the purveyor of an “all the things app” much like standard Chinese language app WeChat, which lets customers ship messages but in addition hail a taxi or pay retailers.

The corporate acquired its first state money-transmitter license in New Hampshire in June final yr and likewise acquired authorized by Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, Maryland and Michigan.