When Apple burst into mobile payments this fall, many analysts warned it could spell trouble for startups in the space — including Square.
But if Jack Dorsey is scared, he isn t showing it.
In an interview with CNN, the Square CEO said that the company will begin accepting Apple Pay sometime next year. Dorsey stressed that all forms of mobile payments — Apple Pay included — will get a warm reception from Square.
Though Dorsey has rolled out the welcome mat, Square won t be able to accept Apple Pay without some creative engineering. Apple Pay is powered by near field communications, or NFC, which lets information jump the short distance from phone to register, but Square s hardware does not currently feature the technology. Dorsey did not detail a work-around in his conversation with CNN.
Whenever Apple Pay makes its way to Square, the union stands to put the mobile payments system within reach for many more small businesses. Square makes hardware that helps companies carry out credit card payments on an iPhone or iPad, a boon for mom-and-pop shops. Apple Pay s debut has been dominated by large chains such as McDonald s and Whole Foods.
So perhaps Square and Apple Pay can have a symbiotic relationship after all. Indeed, Dorsey tried to put to rest the notion that he will have to go head to head with the folks at One Infinite Loop.
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, he told CNN.
