Elon Musk's new X Money comes with a catch that means not everyone can use it

You rarely see a poor bank, do you? With that in mind, Elon Musk is trying to add a few more dollars to his already booming net worth and further cement his status as the world's richest man with X Money.

Even though Elon Musk's somewhat disastrous SpaceX IPO launch has seen him wipe $130 billion off his net worth in a single week and lose his short-lived status as the world's first trillionaire, we're sure he'll claw it back.

With an impressive portfolio that includes everything from X to Tesla, the Boring Company to SpaceX, Musk is arguably one of the savviest businessmen around.

We previously heard plenty about Musk (literally) putting his money where his mouth is via X Money, with the tech billionaire hoping to launch his own bank built directly into X (formerly Twitter). This serves as part of his overall plan to make X into an 'everything app' like China's WeChat.

What is X Money?

Offering a massive 6% interest and 3% is, X Money certainly sounds impressive, although critics claim the bank won't be able to deliver on these lofty ambitions.

Rumors of X Money launching in 2025 never came to pass, but earlier this year, Musk referred to it as "a once-in-a-generation opportunity."

In February 2026, X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, suggested that X Money was just around the corner and hyped its potential: "We are launching a number of features in a couple weeks, including Smart Cashtags that will enable you to trade stocks and crypto directly from timeline."

X Money has been a long time coming, with Musk initially co-founding X.com back in 1999, and it evolving into PayPal. His love of X has resurfaced through the likes of SpaceX and naming one of his kids X, with X Money feeling like things coming full circle.

That's all well and good, but apparently, millions of Americans are locked out of Mr. Musk's money marketing machine.

If you read the small print on the X Money FAQ about who the service is available to, it sneakily confirms only "select users in the United States who are 18 or older" will be granted access. Although X Money vows to expand that to more people, it doesn't confirm exactly who that is.

How do you apply for X Money?

More than being an American over the age of 18, you'll need to be paying for X Premium or Premium+, while only Premium+ subscribers will get immediate access to the 6% rate.

Those on the standard X Premium tier have to meet extra conditions like receiving at least $1,000 through direct deposit.

Added to this, both come with paywalls.

Offsetting Premium+'s $395 subscription means you need to maintain an average balance of at least $6,583 to earn enough interest to cover the cost of entry, while those on Premium will need to keep an average of $1,400 to offset the annual cost of $84.

Still, for those who want to get in now, they'll need to ensure their phone number is verified, they're subscribed to some form of X Premium, and then check the Money tab in X for an invite notification.

Given that the Federal Reserve benchmark rates currently sit around 3.5%, Musk offering 6% effectively means he's 'losing' money by paying us to join. Then again, we're sure the average customer isn't too fussed about that.

While X Money has vowed to expand in phases, it's unclear when exactly that will be and where it's heading next.