Square, the US mobile payments company led by Twitter’s chief executive Jack Dorsey, has unveiled plans for a European expansion.


In a first step, Square will launch its platform – which provides card payments for smaller-sized businesses – in the UK, which is one of the most developed, but crowded, fintech markets in the region.

Mr Dorsey said that the UK market was a particularly good fit for the company, because of its advanced payments behaviours.

“We founded Square to empower small businesses with tools to accept all forms of payments and to make a sale anytime, anywhere,” said Mr Dorsey. “We look forward to working alongside the millions of entrepreneurs and thriving independent, small and medium-sized businesses across the UK, especially those who do not yet take card payments.”

The Californian company, founded and run by Mr Dorsey, who is also Twitter’s chief executive, began taking quiet steps to roll out its service in the UK earlier this year, when it began to accept payment in pound sterling and created an @SquareUK Twitter account.

Square’s UK expansion follows earlier moves into Canada, Australia and Japan, and comes on the back of a better-than expected last financial quarter. When reporting results in February, Square raised its revenue and profit guidance for the first quarter of 2017, and beat expectations for fourth quarter revenues.

The company shrunk its net loss to $15m, from $48m for the same quarter the year before.

Founded in 2009, Square went public in November 2015 and provides cheap debit and credit card readers to small businesses such as coffee carts and flower vendors, allowing them to accept card payments at lower rates and without monthly subscription fees.

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