On January 28, Visa and Elon Musk's X are teaming up to provide direct payment solutions to users of the social media app, as reported by a source to Reuters.
The collaboration is part of Musk's strategy to expand the X platform into a multifunctional app, incorporating features like messaging, social networking, and payments.
Visa will be the inaugural partner for the X Money account, enabling customers to swiftly fund their X wallet, link their debit cards for peer-to-peer payments, and transfer funds to their bank accounts instantly.
The digital payments landscape in the U.S. has experienced considerable growth since 2020, fueled by the pandemic, which has propelled online activity and the need for convenient peer-to-peer transactions through smartphones.
Key players like Visa, along with its competitor Mastercard, have stepped up their investments in digital payments, seeking to compete with tech giants like PayPal, Cash App by Block, Apple Pay, and Google Pay for a share of the profitable market.
Musk, who orchestrated a $44 billion acquisition of Twitter in April 2022 and rebranded it as X, has expressed intentions to shape it into a "super app", inspired by China's WeChat's success.
Described as the Swiss army knife of mobile apps, the super app concept is predominant in Asia and has been a goal for tech companies worldwide to emulate.
In a recent post, X CEO Linda Yaccarino teased the future, writing, By 2025 X will connect you in ways never thought possible. X TV, X Money, Grok and more.