NYT has learned of Musk gaining access to the U.S. payment system

The head of the U.S. Treasury Department Scott Bessent gave the team of American entrepreneur and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Ilon Musk access to the federal payment system to monitor and limit government spending. The New York Times reported on February 1, citing sources.

"Bessent granted representatives of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency full access to the federal payment system late Friday night, according to three people familiar with the changes, handing Ilon Musk and the team he leads a powerful tool to monitor and potentially curb government spending," the publication said.

According to the publication's interlocutors, employees (DOGE) under Musk's leadership were given access to the system, which processes data on payments totaling more than $5 trillion a year. The agency already requires access to data from other agencies, but control over payments of the U.S. Treasury Department is a key tool. The system stores personal data of millions of citizens, which increases the risk of conflict of interest, the material noted.

"It is unclear whether the team led by Musk, the world's richest man, has blocked any payments since gaining access to the system," the paper added.

"They're going to try to make up anything that can hurt the Trump team's reputation."

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Earlier, on January 31, Reuters reported that Musk's aides involved in running the U.S. Office of Personnel Management had shut down access to all databases with personal information for government employees. The systems, according to the publication's interlocutors, included databases containing information on employees' birth dates, addresses, salaries and length of employment.

At the same time, Musk proposed to cut the United States budget spending by $4 billion a day to reduce the federal deficit in 2026. According to him, even such measures would reduce the budget deficit from $2 trillion to $1 trillion, but economic growth should match this figure, which in turn means no inflation in 2026.

Meanwhile, on January 30, according to a poll conducted by Quinnipiac University, it became known that many Americans do not approve of Musk's active role in the administration of US President Donald Trump. Thus, 53% of respondents said that they do not support the active role of the entrepreneur in the American administration. At the same time, 39% of respondents expressed their support for him.