R4_Square_Falling

Square Plans to Offer Apple Pay to SMBs in 2015

November 24, 2024         By: Michael Cheng

Square’s founder and CEO, Jack Dorsey, recently told CNN that Apple Pay support may be on the way some time next year.

The potential collaboration could not have come at a better time for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Since its release, Apple Pay has taken a lot of heat for only catering to major retailers. SMBs have been patiently waiting to offer the convenient payment option for their consumers but the lack of support for NFC among SMBs has made that difficult. The Square platform comes into the picture as a reliable way of processing credit card payments on iPhones and iPads. The company’s user demographic includes small merchants, artisans, and startups.

The partnership would allow Apple to spread its new payment service to both consumers and SMBs- groups that the tech company has been unable to reach directly. Several large brands have turned down Apple Pay due to their commitment with other competing payments platforms.

Square is currently updating its hardware, which establishments need to have in order process Apple Pay transactions. The hardware update is only applicable to SMBs that are using the company’s mobile card reader. Handsets that have built-in NFC features would not need to use Square’s external processing device.

Jack Dorsey, founder of Square, said, “We’re not building a credit card. We’re not building a payment device. We’re building a [cash] register, and this register accepts all these forms of payments.”

Many considered Square’s platform to rival Apple Pay. But based on Dorsey’s statements, this may not be the case. In a recent interview, he expressed his priority in providing a variety of payment options to SMBs, enabling such establishments to process digital transactions efficiently.

Square is famous for its credit card reader, though its current, and future EMV-compliant iterations are not equipped to handle NFC transactions.

Square plans to offer Apple Pay to its users in 2015. Analysts expect the company to continue its expansion, as it rolls out its services to other countries worldwide.