The Fintech Effect

Jack Dorsey’s Square rolls out bitcoin to more of its Cash app users

Key Points
  • Square said in a tweet that it plans to expand the feature to "more of our most active customers."
  • Shares of the firm were up around 2 percent Wednesday in U.S. premarket trade.
Jack Dorsey
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Square is letting more people buy and sell bitcoin on its Cash app.

The payments firm had tested the feature with a number of Cash users last month, and said in a tweet Wednesday that it planned to expand the feature to "more of our most active customers."

Tweet

Users can swipe right from their Cash Card page to buy bitcoin. The digital asset surged past $12,000 for the first time Wednesday.

Jack Dorsey, the chief executive of both Square and Twitter, has said that he views bitcoin as more of an investment vehicle than a means of payment. Dorsey said he has invested in the cryptocurrency.

In statement last month, a Square spokesperson said: "We've found that (our customers) are interested in using the Cash app to buy bitcoin. We're exploring how Square can make this experience faster and easier, and have rolled out this feature to a small number of Cash app customers. We believe cryptocurrency can greatly impact the ability of individuals to participate in the global financial system and we're excited to learn more here."

Square's stock price reacted positively to initial reports that cryptocurrency functionality was being tested on its payments app.

Shares of the firm were up around 2 percent Wednesday in U.S. premarket trade, trading at $37.60 a share at 9:37 a.m. London time (4:37 a.m. ET).