Square’s International Starbucks Expansion Is Up To Jack Dorsey, Says Starbucks CEO. The payments space was even further shaken up last night, with the news that Square will take over all U.S. credit and debit card transactions for Starbucks.
And those who use the Pay with Square app (iPhone and Android) will be able to pay for their sugary caffeinated drinks with nothing more than their phone. This morning in New York, a handful of journalists sat down with Square CEO Jack Dorsey and Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz to discuss the “epic” partnership. Before we get into the nitty gritty, it’s important to note the direct impact this partnership has on Square as a business and its plans for the future. For now, it seems as though the partnership is mostly on the backend with Square handling all credit and debit card transactions in the U.S. But this could be the catalyst that propels Square onto the international scene. “Over a million people a week are paying with their mobile device at Starbucks,” said Schultz.
Opportunities for Square. Square, Inc.: Why did traditional Silicon Valley VC not invest in Square's latest round. Josh Ellstein's answer to Square, Inc.: How much money is Square losing. Wake Up And Smell The Coffee: Square Could Be At The Epicenter Of The ‘Seismic Change’ Away From Cash. The $25 million funding and sales deal announced late yesterday between mobile payments startup Square and coffee giant Starbucks is big, but it is only the tip of the iceberg for what the implications will be for Square and for mobile payments in general.
The deal formally covers 7,000 U.S. Starbucks stores, where Starbucks says customers will have “another way to enjoy a quick and seamless payment experience” at the coffee houses, alongside Starbucks’ existing mobile app, which also lets users pay without cards or cash and has seen some 60 million transactions to date. But however big that already is, the Starbucks deal could mean more.
It potentially gives Square, which has 2 million businesses and individuals using it worldwide, a partner on which to piggy back into international markets. And a big back it is: Starbucks has nearly 20,000 stores worldwide today. The “Squarebucks” deal gives rise to questions of what is going to happen with all of the other players in this space.
BREAKING NEWS: SQUARE Inc. Raising $200M Funding Round At Whopping $3.2 Billion Valuation, Double Year Ago Valuation; Round Led By Private Equity Firm RIZVI TRAVERSE; Founder Jack Dorsey (Also Co-Founder of Twitter) Now Officially. July 25, 2012 1:45am EST – Square (PrivCo Private Company Ticker: SQUAREP) is closing a new $200 Million funding round, valuing the 3-year old privately-held mobile payments company at a whopping $3.2 Billion valuation, representing a doubling of Square's last valuation of $1.6 Billion just 1-year ago, in July 2011. Answer to Square (product): What impact will Square's addition of encryption to its card reader have. Square, Inc.: What is Square's average transaction size. Square, Inc.: Can Square make money with its new pricing.
Answer to Square, Inc.: What was used to create Square's "One Hour of Square" infographic. Square, Inc.: Is Square actually profitable, or is it pulling a Groupon (i.e. wildly popular with the press but, unbeknownst to us, losing money fast) Square, Inc.: What is the distribution of Square merchants in the US. How much will it cost Square to replace the unencrypted readers for encrypted ones. Can Square Make Money with it’s New Pricing? Mobile Payments Startup Square Ups The Ante, Drops Transaction Fee For Businesses. Mobile payments company Square has made an interesting move today, which should put competitors Verifone and Intuit on notice.
The startup is dropping the per transaction charge for any business using its mobile payments device and service. Square previously charged 2.75% of each transaction amount plus a flat $0.15 per transaction fee. Today, Square is completely dropping the per transaction charge. So why is the mobile payments company dropping the transaction fee? Square’s COO Keith Rabois says that along with simplifying the payments experience for businesses, it is also taking on the hidden fees and teaser rate structure that have plagued the credit card industry. Fresh off a $27.5 million funding round, Square is gaining a lot of a lot of buzz and just debuted a new billboard in Times Square. Currently the majority of Square’s users are small businesses, so no transaction charge will surely be a big draw for users who aren’t raking in millions in revenue. Targeting Merchants, Square Debuts Register iPad App And Analytics; Now Processing $4B In Payments Per Year.
As we reported earlier this year, mobile payments company Square revealed that it was planning to add a number of new operational capabilities and data analysis to the register, including in-depth analytics.
Tonight, Square is debuting this functionality in the form of a new iPad app. The app aims to replicate the actual experience of a register, similar to Square’s existing iPad app. But this new, free app, called Square Register, comes as a more full-fledged point of sale offering. You can access the app here. The app has a completely new UI, and a better integration with Card Case, which is Square’s consumer-facing loyalty, payments and merchant-discovery app. Basically, the new app’s UI has been reconfigured so that it’s a perfect fit for brick and mortar businesses, whether they have 10 items or 10,000. The new app and Square also features in-depth analytics, allowing merchants to segment consumer payments data and transactions. 2011 proved to be an eventful one for Square. Square Review & Complaints.
Square Rating Best Mobile Payment Apps For: iPhone & Android | Square User Reviews Jump to: Sales & Marketing | Costs & Contract | Complaints & Service | BBB Complaints Square Overview Square Logo Unlike most Square reviews (squareup.com & square.com), this Square Up review primarily covers the topics that matter to most merchants and small business owners rather than Square’s technology.
Founded in February of 2009 by Jack Dorsey, who is also the founder of Twitter.com, Square has seen tremendous growth in a very short amount of time.