WHEN: TODAY, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19
WHERE: CNBC'S "SQUAWK ON THE STREET"
Following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC EXCLUSIVE interview with Square Founder & CEO Jack Dorsey on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" today. The interview comes as the company began trading at the NYSE for the first time today. Following are links to the video of the interview on CNBC.com: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000456725 and http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000456724.
All references must be sourced to CNBC.
CARL QUINTANILLA: WELCOME BACK. SQUARE CLEARLY THE STORY OF THE MORNING, PRICING AT $9 BUT TRADING AT $12 AND CHANGE. THAT'S A 35% GAIN TODAY FOR SQ, WELL ABOVE THE SECOND HALF TREND FOR TECH COMPANIES ON THEIR FIRST DAY. JOINING US EXCLUSIVELY THIS MORNING IS JACK DORSEY, THE CO-FOUNDER AND CEO OF SQUARE WHO JOINS US ONCE AGAIN AT POST 9. GOOD TO HAVE YOU BACK.
JACK DORSEY: THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
QUINTANILLA: CONGRATULATIONS.
DORSEY: THANK YOU.
QUINTANILLA: SO MUCH TALK ABOUT WHERE YOU CAME IN, YOU PRICED BEFORE WE TALK ABOUT WHERE IT'S TRADING RIGHT NOW. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR YOU? WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR TECH?
DORSEY: WHAT IT MEANS FOR US IS THIS IS A MOMENT. WE'RE ENTERING A NEW MARKET, AND WE'RE -- YOU KNOW, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED JUST TO GET BACK TO WORK. WE HAVE A LONG-TERM VIEW ON OUR BUSINESS AND WHERE WE NEED TO GO AND WHAT WE NEED TO DO, AND WE JUST WANT TO BUILD GOOD TOOLS THAT PEOPLE LOVE.
QUINTANILLA: FRED WILSON BLOGS TODAY, SOMETIMES YOU JUST NEED TO GET THE DEAL DONE. THE TERMS MIGHT SUCK, BUT THE CASH DOESN'T, SO YOU DO THE DEAL, AND YOU LIVE TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY. DOES THAT SUM UP HOW YOU FEEL?
DORSEY: HE'S ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. IT'S ALL ABOUT GETTING THE BUSINESS AND ACCELERATING THE BUSINESS AND THAT'S WHAT WE CAME HERE TO DO TODAY AND WE DID IT.
KAYLA TAUSCHE: YOU HAVE THOUGH $174 MILLION IN CASH. YOU RAISED ABOUT $240 MILLION IN THIS DEAL. WHY DID YOU NEED THAT CASH, AND WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH IT?
DORSEY: WE REALLY WANT TO ACCELERATE OUR TOOLS OUT TO SELLERS ALL OVER THE WORLD, AND A BIG PART OF OUR FUTURE IS REALLY AROUND THIS DEVICE THAT WE ANNOUNCED, OUR NEW READER THAT ACCEPTS APPLE PAY AND EMV. WE WANT TO SEE THAT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF EVERY TRANSACTION. WE'RE SELLING IT AT $49. WE HAVE 350,000 PREORDERS ALREADY AND WE'RE SHIPPING IT THIS YEAR. SO WE WANT TO ASSOCIATE THAT SQUARE SHAPE WITH YOU CAN PAY WITH YOUR PHONE. WE THINK IT IS A BEAUTIFUL EXPERIENCE SUBSECOND TRANSACTION TIME AND IT JUST FEELS GREAT.
TAUSCHE: WHAT'S THE UPTICK OF THAT DEVICE AND HOW MUCH ARE CUSTOMERS AND MERCHANTS USING THINGS LIKE APPLE PAY, ANDROID PAY? WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING ON YOUR PLATFORM THAT TELLS YOU WHERE TO MOVE.
DORSEY: IT'S REALLY INTERESTING BECAUSE WE HAVE THE DEVICE. OUR SQUARE READER, ACCEPTING APPLE PAY AND ANDROID PAY AT A FEW MERCHANTS IN SAN FRANCISCO AND WE'RE SEEING THE SAME NUMBER, PERCENTAGE NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS WITH PEOPLE TAPPING THEIR PHONE AS WE ARE WITH PEOPLE SWIPING THEIR CARD. SO WE THINK THIS IS GOING TO SHIFT VERY QUICKLY, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK WE BRING TO THE TABLE IS WE REPRESENT THE EVERYDAY. WE REPRESENT THE COFFEE STORE, THE LUNCH PLACE, AND IF WE CAN GET THAT SQUARE LOGO TO SAY WE ACCEPT APPLE PAY, WE ACCEPT PAYING WITH YOUR PHONE AND YOU SEE IT EVERYWHERE, YOU SEE IT FOUR TIMES IN YOUR WEEK, IT CHANGES BEHAVIOR.
QUINTANILLA: YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT 30 MILLION BUSINESSES, 9 MILLION ACCEPT A CREDIT CARD. IT'S A BIG PIECE OF THE PIE THAT BASICALLY IS CASH ONLY, RIGHT?
DORSEY: YEAH.
QUINTANILLA: WHAT'S A REASONABLE PIECE OF THAT PIE THAT YOU CAN TAKE, THAT 20 MILLION?
DORSEY: WELL, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT ACCEPTING CREDIT CARDS AS WELL. IT'S REALLY ABOUT HELPING A BUSINESS START RUNNING AND GROW THEIR BUSINESS. SO WE'VE ALWAYS HAD A PHILOSOPHY OF ANY PAYMENT DEVICE THAT COMES ACROSS THE COUNTER, WE'RE GOING TO ENABLE OUR SELLERS TO ACCEPT IT BECAUSE IT'S ALL ABOUT MAKING THE SALE AND CREDIT CARDS ARE WHERE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN MOVING QUITE SOME TIME. CASH IS DIMINISHED, PEOPLE AREN'T CARRYING THEIR CHECKBOOKS AT ALL. WE THINK THERE'S A HUGE OPPORTUNITY IN THE 20 MILLION SMALL BUSINESSES ALONE IN THE UNITED STATES BUT THERE'S 85 MILLION SMALL BUSINESSES AROUND THE WORLD THAT DON'T ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS TODAY, AND WE THINK WE CAN SERVE THEM IN A GREAT WAY AND ALSO HELP THEM GROW THEIR BUSINESS. ONE OF THE BEST THINGS ABOUT SQUARE IS IF WE FOCUS ON GROWING A BUSINESS, OUR BUSINESS GROWS AS WELL. SO OUR INTERESTS ARE COMPLETELY ALIGNED WITH OUR CUSTOMERS'.
QUINTANILLA: I REMEMBER YOU CAME ON THIS SET A WHILE BACK WITH HOWARD SCHULTZ AND ROLLED OUT THE STARBUCKS DEAL. WHAT HAPPENED? HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN WHAT HAPPENED?
DORSEY: HOWARD E-MAILED ME WHEN WE WERE TWO YEARS OLD AS A COMPANY AND WE WERE SO EXCITED THAT HE CHOSE US TO PROCESS THEIR PAYMENTS AND TO BUILD SQUARE WALLET INTO THEIR STORES, AND WE LOVED IT, AND IN THREE MONTHS, AFTER THAT ANNOUNCEMENT, IN THREE MONTHS WE BUILT A STACK THAT COULD PROCESS FOR 7,000 STARBUCKS STORE IN THE UNITED STATES WITHOUT MISSING A BEAT AND WHAT THAT SAYS IS THAT ANY ONE OF OUR SELLERS CAN REACH THAT HEIGHT, ANY ONE OF OUR SELLERS CAN GROW TO THAT LEVEL AROUND THE WORLD, AND THAT'S REALLY POWERFUL. AND, YOU KNOW, WE WANTED A BIG FOCUS ON SQUARE WALLET AND A BIG FOCUS ON OUR READERS, AND, YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T SEE AS MUCH AS WE WANTED TO THERE, SO WE ENDED THE RELATIONSHIP AND THAT'S REFLECTED IN OUR ESTIMATE.
TAUSCHE: BUT WHAT WAS IT EXACTLY BECAUSE ANYONE IN YOUR POSITION WOULD LOOK AT STARBUCKS AND THE UBIQUITY OF THAT BRAND AND SAY THAT'S A DREAM PARTNER, THAT'S A DREAM CUSTOMER. WHAT HAPPENED AND DOES IT GIVE YOU PAUSE ABOUT WORKING WITH OTHER BIG VENDORS IN THE FUTURE?
DORSEY: NO, NOT AT ALL. EVERY ONE OF OUR SELLERS IS GROWING. BLUE BOTTLE STARTED WITH US AT TEN LOCATIONS AND NOW 30 LOCATIONS AROUND THE WORLD AND USING US IN TOKYO. ALL THESE SELLERS HAVE BIG AMBITIONS AND WE JUST WANT TO BE THERE. WE HAVE OTHER CUSTOMERS LIKE UNIGLO THAT ARE USING US IN THEIR U.S. STORES AND ALSO THEIR JAPANESE STORES AND THEY'RE REPORTING 20% INCREASES IN SALES BECAUSE THEY'RE USING SQUARE.
TAUSCHE: YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO BE HELPING SOME OF THOSE SMALL BUSINESSES GROW. YOU'RE GETTING INTO THE LENDING BUSINESS AND A LOT OF INVESTORS SAY THAT'S MAYBE WHERE THE GROWTH FOR THE COMPANY LIES GROWTH FOR THE COMPANY LIES. A LOT OF INVESTORS WANT TO PUT MONEY IN THE FORM OF THIRD PARTY MONEY INTO SQUARE CAPITAL. WHEN DOES THAT BECOME A LINE ITEM? WHEN DOES THAT BECOME MATERIAL TO SQUARE WHERE DO YOU SEE THAT GOING?
DORSEY: WE THINK THERE'S A LOT OF GROWTH IN THE PAYMENTS' BUSINESS FIRST AND FOREMOST AND THAT ENABLES US TO DO SOMETHING LIKE SQUARE CAPITAL. SQUARE CAPITAL IS FANTASTIC. WE'VE ADVANCED OVER $300 MILLION TO 40,000 SELLERS. WE HAVE A REALLY UNIQUE APPROACH IN THAT WE CAN E-MAIL OUR SELLERS AND INVITE THEM IN. TAP OF A BUTTON AND THEY GET THEIR MONEY THE NEXT BUSINESS MORNING, SO SAY YOU GET $5,000, YOU CAN BUY A NEW SALON CHAIR, YOU CAN HIRE A NEW EMPLOYEE, DO SOME MARKETING, AND THEN YOUR SALES DOUBLE, AND THEN BECAUSE YOU'RE PROCESSING WITH SQUARE AS WELL AND TAKING OUR PAYMENTS, OUR BUSINESS DOUBLES AS WELL. SO, AGAIN, THAT PERFECT ALIGNMENT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO US, AND WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE SQUARE CAPITAL BUSINESS.
TAUSCHE: YOU HAVE LENDING CLUB UNDERWRITING $2.5 BILLION DOLLARS A QUARTER I AM WONDERING DO YOU SEE YOURSELF SCALING SQUARE CAPITAL TO A LEVEL LIKE THAT OR WILL IT BE SMALLER?
DORSEY: WE THINK IT'S A MASSIVE BUSINESS AND WE HAVE UNIQUE INFORMATION BECAUSE WE HAVE A DEEP RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR SELLERS.
QUINTANILLA: YOU STARTED THE INTERVIEW BY SAYING WE'RE ENTERING A NEW MARKET. WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TO YOU?
DORSEY: WE'RE ENTERING A NEW MARKET.
QUINTANILLA: IN TERMS OF I ASKED YOU ABOUT VALUATION AND THE PRICING TONIGHT AND EVERYONE OUT WEST LOOKING AT HOW YOU OPENED TODAY.
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, I HAVEN'T REALLY BEEN PAYING THAT MUCH ATTENTION IN THE IMMEDIATE. I'M REALLY EXCITED TO GET BACK TO WORK AND BUILD THESE TOOLS.
QUINTANILLA: RAMIFICATIONS FOR UNICORNS?
DORSEY: I DON'T KNOW.
QUINTANILLA: YOU'LL ADMIT YOU'RE A TEST, YES?
DORSEY: I DON'T KNOW I'M NOT AN ECONOMIST. WE HAVE AN ECONOMIST ON OUR BOARD, LARRY SUMMERS. YOU SHOULD ASK HIM. BRING HIM ON.
TAUSCHE: DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU TOOK ONE FOR THE TEAM BECAUSE THAT WAS THE SENSE IN THE HEADLINES –WHEN YOUR INITIAL VALUATION CAME
DORSEY: THAT'S NOT HOW I THINK ABOUT IT AT ALL. WE RAISED SOME MONEY SO WE CAN ACCELERATE OUR BUSINESS AND SERVE OUR CUSTOMERS BETTER AND THAT'S WHAT MATTERS.
QUINTANILLA: THERE'S A SENSE THAT – AMONG SOME THAT A YEAR FROM NOW YOU'RE GOING TO LOOK SMART. THAT YOU GOT IN BEFORE THINGS TRULY BECAME MORE DIFFICULT FOR PRIVATE COMPANIES TO GO PUBLIC. DO YOU THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE THE CASE?
DORSEY: I MEAN, WE'RE GOING TO LOOK SMART IF WE'RE SERVING MORE SELLERS AND WE'RE SERVING THEM BETTER. THAT'S REALLY WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO.
TAUSCHE: WE'VE SEEN A LOT OF COMPANIES CHOOSE TO GO THE ACQUISITION ROUTE BECAUSE THE IPO MARKET HAS BEEN SO BUMPY. AND I KNOW THAT ONE OF THE BENEFITS TO YOUR PLATFORM IS BEING AGNOSTIC. YOU ACCEPT VISA AND MASTERCARD. YOU ACCEPT ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PAYMENTS. BUT I'M WONDERING IF THERE COMES A TIME WHEN THERE ARE BENEFITS TO BEING OWNED BY A BIGGER COMPANY?
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, I CAN'T SPEAK FOR OTHER COMPANIES, BUT I THINK WE HAVE A LOT OF POWER IN OUR INDEPENDENCE. AS YOU SAID, LIKE WE CAN REALLY BE A PLATFORM THAT IS AGNOSTIC TO DEVICES AND TO NETWORKS. AND I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE OUR SELLERS SHOULDN'T HAVE TO CARE WHAT COMES ACROSS THE COUNTER. THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE TO CARE HOW THEIR BUYERS ARE PAYING. AND THE BUYERS, THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO PAY WITH WHATEVER THEY WANT. SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO US TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THAT AT ALL. THEY CAN ACCEPT EVERY FORM OF PAYMENT. AND THAT MEANS THEY MAKE EVERY SALE. THAT'S WHAT MATTERS. MAKING THE SALE.
QUINTANILLA: YOUR SELLERS MIGHT ARGUE IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOT OPERATE AT A LOSS FOR A LONG TIME. YOU'VE GOT EIGHT CONSECUTIVE QUARTERS OF NET LOSSES. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO YOU TO MAKE A PROFIT?
DORSEY: WELL, AS ANY ENTREPRENEUR WOULD TELL YOU AND ANY ONE OF OUR SELLERS, YOU HAVE TO INVEST IN YOUR BUSINESS AND YOU HAVE TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS. AND, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T SEE THIS AS A LOSS. WE SEE THIS AS AN INVESTMENT IN OUR BUSINESS AND IT COSTS MONEY. SO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF OUR BUSINESS. WE HAVE A VERY CLEAR SENSE OF THE CONTROLS OF THE BUSINESS. WE SHOWED A BREAKEVEN IN Q2 OF THIS YEAR AND THAT REALLY PROVES THAT LIKE WE HAVE A BUSINESS THAT CAN SEE THAT, BUT WE WANT TO INVEST IN GROWTH.
QUINTANILLA: COUPLE OF QUESTIONS ON TWITTER. HOW LONG CAN YOU DO BOTH OF THESE JOBS? AS HONESTLY AS YOU CAN TELL US.
DORSEY: AS LONG AS I HAVE GREAT TEAMS AROUND ME. IT'S ALL MADE POSSIBLE BY THE TEAMS, AND OUR LEADERSHIP TEAMS –
QUINTANILLA: IS IT NOT A STRAIN AT ALL?
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, IT'S DEFINITELY HARD. IT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT I APPROACHED WITH A LOT OF SELF AWARENESS AND I HAVE BEEN VERY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT, BUT I BENEFIT MASSIVELY FROM OUR LEADERSHIP TEAMS. YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ALONE. AND, YOU KNOW, THAT CONTINUES TO PROVE OUT IN EVERY SINGLE INDUSTRY AND EVERY SINGLE ROLE. AND I JUST HAVE THE BEST TEAMS ON THE PLANET.
TAUSCHE: WE JOKE THAT WE WANT WHATEVER TIME MANAGEMENT APP YOU'RE USING BECAUSE IT COULD HELP A LOT OF US. THE COMPANIES ARE NEXT DOOR TO EACH OTHER –
DORSEY: THEY'RE NEXT DOOR TO EACH OTHER.
TAUSCHE: BUT IN ALL SERIOUSNESS, DO YOU WALK OVER TO THE OTHER COMPANY AT LUNCHTIME? HOW DO YOU SPLIT THE DAY?
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, EVERY – BOTH ARE GOING TO HAVE DIFFERENT MEANINGFUL EVENTS, BUT I'M AT BOTH COMPANIES EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND THERE'S A BLUE BOTTLE COFFEE RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE. AND THEY'RE ACCEPTING APPLE PAY. SO I CAN PAY WITH MY PHONE. IT'S VERY FAST, AND I CAN GO ABOUT MY WORK AND GO ABOUT MY BUSINESS.
QUINTANILLA: THE STREET HAS GONE AROUND AND AROUND TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE TWITTER STORY. BECOMING ADDICTED TO THE MAU METRIC. WHAT DO YOU WANT WALL STREET TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT TWITTER'S GROWTH THAT IT DOESN'T GET YET?
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS TO WATCH IS JUST HOW INSTRUMENTAL TWITTER HAS BEEN IN THE WORLD, AND WE SEE THAT WEEK AFTER WEEK AFTER WEEK.
QUINTANILLA: THAT WAS A STORY WHEN WE –
DORSEY: AND THAT'S WHAT I LOOK AT EVERY SINGLE TIME IS HOW ARE PEOPLE USING THE SERVICE? AND IS IT MEANINGFUL TO THEIR LIFE –
QUINTANILLA: YOU HAVE BEEN CHANGING THE WORLD FOR YEARS.
DORSEY: THEY'VE BEEN CHANGING THE WORLD. WE CREATE THE TOOL. THEY'VE BEEN CHANGING THE WORLD WITH IT. AND THAT'S WHAT'S IMPORTANT.
TAUSCHE: WE WERE HERE WITH YOU ON THIS FLOOR A LITTLE MORE THAN TWO YEARS AGO WHEN TWITTER WENT PUBLIC. JUMPED 73% THE FIRST DAY. OF COURSE, THE STOCK HAS COME BACK DOWN TO EARTH. AS YOU WATCH SQUARE PRICING, AND AS YOU WATCH IT TRADING UP 50% NOW, DO YOU HAVE ANY LESSONS THAT YOU LEARNED FROM THE TWITTER IPO ABOUT WHERE THE STOCK WENT, WHAT THE STREET NEEDED TO HEAR THAT YOU'RE BRINGING WITH YOU NOW?
DORSEY: YOU KNOW, I'M ALWAYS LEARNING. I LEARN FROM TWITTER, I LEARN FROM SQUARE, I LEARN FROM MY TEAM. BOTH TEAMS ARE SMARTER THAN ME. I HAVE HIRED PEOPLE THAT ARE BETTER THAN ME. AND I LEARN EVERY DAY. AND YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOT ONE MOMENT WHERE LEARNING STOPS AND THERE'S NOT ONE MOMENT THAT ALL LEARNING IS HOOKED TO. IT'S A DAILY THING. THIS IS OUR WORK, AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE CUSTOMERS THAT WE SERVE. WE HAVE PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD THAT WE SERVE, AND WE WANT TO DO RIGHT BY THEM.
QUINTANILLA: LAST QUESTION. WERE HEARTS THE RIGHT MOVE? HAPPY BIRTHDAY.
DORSEY: THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
QUINTANILLA: BIG THREE-NINE TODAY. AND CONGRATULATIONS ON THE IPO.
DORSEY: THANK YOU SO MUCH.
QUINTANILLA: JACK DORSEY JOINING US, CO-FOUNDER AND CEO OF SQUARE.
DORSEY: THANK YOU.
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