Senator Richard Blumental, D-CT, will speak at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the January 6th rebellion in the Hart Senate Bureau building in Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C., on March 2, 2021.
Graeme Jennings | Pool via Reuters
Senator Richard Blumenthal this week visa We are preparing to launch a digital wallet for detailed plans and documents related to transactions to provide payment services to Elon Musk’s social media site X.
Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat and a ranking member of the Senate’s permanent subcommittee on investigations, pointed to the role of Musk, the consumer watchdog, the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, as the key dog, as the reason for the information request, according to a March 6 letter obtained by CNBC.
“Given his unique position as X’s Chair and Chief Technology Officer as leader of the government’s efficiency department and his recent role in stumbling the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, Visa will take advantage of the deep conflict of interest and unclear behavior of his new business partner,” writes Blumenthal.
The Senate’s request is one of the first signs of scrutiny on visas, which operates the world’s largest credit card network, after an announcement in late January that it agreed to peer-to-peer payments with X in late January. Once the transaction is disclosed, operatives from Musk’s government efficiency will have access to the CFPB data system and hope that MASK will compete with its competitors. X Money Service.
The letter, addressed to Visa CEO Ryan McInerney, also raises doubts about whether social media networks known for “bots, fraud and hate speech” can prevent fraud and fraud from multiplying on the site. Musk bought the site, known as Twitter in 2022.
“These concerns raise questions about X’s ability to challenge the financial sector about its ability to protect consumers from fraud and fraud,” writes Blumenthal.
“As the world’s largest payment processor, Visa is legally responsible for ensuring that its network is free of financial crimes such as fraud, fraud, money laundering, and terrorist financing,” he said.
Blumenthal asked for a detailed explanation of Visa’s plan to enable X payments, including the business model of services complying with regulatory requirements for money laundering and illegal remittances and Visa’s role.
He also pushed Visa for “all records” related to transactions and communications between X, Visa, Doge and CFPB personnel.
“We are currently reviewing the letter and will respond appropriately,” a Visa spokesperson said in a statement.
Representatives of X did not immediately have a comment.
