Square

Square is moving to help minority and underserved groups by investing $100 million in nonprofit financial institutions and Black-owned businesses.

Square is entering the earned wage access (EWA) fray, but it’s taking a tailored approach that aims to drive transaction volume within its Cash App.

The e-commerce leader’s return to the drawing board alleviates immediate concerns about its banking plans. But the company intends to reapply, and it will be harder for the industry to persuade policymakers to block industrial loan companies more broadly.

Facing Wall Street analysts for the first time after the murder of George Floyd, CEOs of major payment companies joined other financial services firms in promising to improve fairness and opportunities for Black people and other underrepresented groups.

Square's gross payment volume tumbled by 15% year-over-year due to COVID-19’s impact, but revenue jumped as online selling rose, Cash App doubled in users and Square enabled almost $900 million in PPP loans.

Two trade organizations and a consumer group urged lawmakers to establish a three-year moratorium to block the charter bids of companies that they said were attempting to skirt regulatory requirements.

What made the attack on famous Twitter accounts so problematic wasn’t the high profile of its victims, but the non-technical and repeatable method the assailants used.

Restaurants, medical offices and car dealerships were the top recipients of large loans; increased usage of the drive-ups is putting a strain on the low-tech lanes.

Small banks have long led the campaign against industrial loan companies, arguing they can be used to violate the separation of banking and commerce. But now the industry’s heavyweights are also taking a hard line in response to an FDIC proposal that would give tech companies a smoother path into the lending business.

Brick-and-mortar merchants that have shifted to online have changed their risk profile, causing conflicts with the fintechs like Square that handle their payments. And that could be an opportunity for banks.