Square + Apple, or the Beginning of the End of Physical Payment Terminals 📲; No signs of a slowdown? Italy's 2nd unicorn is a BNPL 🦄; JPMorgan's push into co-branded cards, & why it can be huge 💳
FinTech is Eating the World, 30 September
Hey Everyone,
TGIF! Today’s issue is like a fine wine with a good dinner after a long week🍷 We’re looking at Square partnering with Apple, which marks the Beginning of the End of Physical Payment Terminals (bonus is a glimpse into Apple’s quest to dominate POS payments), Italy's second unicorn, which is a BNPL FinTech (bonus is a reminder why every FinTech must have a BNPL strategy), and JPMorgan's push into co-branded cards (& why it can be huge!). Let’s jump straight into the good stuff:
Square + Apple, or the Beginning of the End of Physical Payment Terminals 📲
The launch 🚀 FinTech giant Block SQ 0.00%↑, the company behind Square and Cash App, has ended its Early Access Program and it now supports Apple’s AAPL 0.00%↑ Tap to Pay for iPhone feature for all merchants.
The USP 🥊 Existing Square users or new businesses wanting to use Square can now use their iPhones to receive payments while using the FinTech company’s financial management software.
Tap to Pay on iPhone uses Apple’s contactless payment acceptance capability within the Square POS app. Using just an iPhone and Square’s POS app, sellers can use the tool to take in-person contactless payments.
Just look at how seamless it is! (the example below is with Stripe NOT Square, but the UX is pretty much the same):
For the context, Apple officially rolled out the ability to use iPhones as payment terminals for merchants with the iOS 15.4 update in March.
Why this matters? 🤔 In addition to further advancing Block’s ecosystem and adding more value to existing and future merchants & sellers, this development is significant because it probably marks the beginning of the end of physical payment terminals. Here’s more on that + the takeaway: