This is not investment advice. The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Wccftech.com has a disclosure and ethics policy.
Elon Musk's plans to enable money transfers on his social media network X have run into a roadblock as regulators in New York question the firm's ability to detect terrorism and money laundering-related transfers, says a report from The Information. Musk has long aimed to make X into an 'everything app' and a 'global town hall,' but with his time divided across multiple ventures, the money transfer plans appear to have been placed on the back burner, with progress several years behind what the executive had originally envisioned.
Elon Musk's Attention Diverted Away From X Money To xAI, Says Report
According to the details shared with the publication by its two sources, Elon Musk is adamant that X launch X Money either nationwide or not at all. The difference in opinion stems from the fact that while service has received approval in several states, it is yet to receive New York's blessing. Being the world's financial capital, New York has strict regulations when it comes to money transfers.
The Information's sources believe that New York regulators do not believe X has enough staff to ensure compliance with stringent money laundering and terrorism financing guidelines. Another problem stems from the fact that while Musk does not want to set up secure sign-in mechanisms such as separate logins or two-factor authentication, regulators believe that these features might be necessary to prevent fraud and abuse.
The resulting slowdown in progress at X Money has led to high staff turnover, making it unlikely that the service will be able to launch soon. Musk himself appears to be focused on other areas. The executive has been regularly sharing features of his Grok AI chatbot and application on his social media platform X.
He also gave an update about X's advertising strategy yesterday, which saw presenters lament that not a single product had been sold on the platform to date despite its sizable user base. Some of the high-profile departures at X Money include the CEO of its legal entity, compliance officers and other staff, reports The Information.
The X advertising update saw Musk comment that his firm wants to revolutionize the way advertisements work. While viewers typically find advertisements cumbersome, Musk told advertisers that he wants "to change that completely to where you can even go on X and you look forward to the ads, where you’re actually interested to see what ads show up because they’re going to be for products and services that you want."
About the author: Ramish is a seasoned technology writer and editor with more than a decade of experience. He specializes in semiconductor fabrication and market analysis. With a background in finance and supply chain management - via his bachelors in Finance and a micromasters in supply chain management from MIT - Ramish combines financial rigor with deep industry insight to deliver accurate and authoritative coverage.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
