- The decision comes only a few days after Dorsey resigned as CEO of Twitter.
- A hardware wallet for bitcoin is also being considered by Square.
Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey’s Square Inc, the payments startup, said on Wednesday that it was changing its name to Block Inc. in order to grow into emerging technologies like blockchain.
The brand “Square” has become associated with Square’s selling business, according to the San Francisco-based firm. In a similar tactic to Meta Platforms Inc. Facebook’s rebranding last month, Square has renamed its corporate structure.
We’re changing our company name so we can give the full @Square brand to our Seller business. So now we need a name to tie @Square, @CashApp, @TIDAL, and @TBD54566975 together into one. That name is “Block.” Why? https://t.co/vVSKNnMUU3
— Square (@Square) December 1, 2021
A statement from the firm indicated there would be no organizational changes and that Square, the peer-to-peer payment service, will continue to operate as a separate business unit, such as Spotify and Cash App allowing users to stream music. There will be no change to Tidal and its bitcoin-focused financial services section TBD54566975. Extended trading saw a 1% gain for the company’s stock.
Square said in a statement:
“The name has many associated meanings for the company — building blocks, neighborhood blocks and their local businesses, communities coming together at block parties full of music, a blockchain, a section of code, and obstacles to overcome.”
Days After Dorsey Resigned
The decision comes only a few days after Dorsey resigned as CEO of Twitter. Square Crypto, a team “dedicated to advancing Bitcoin,” will also be renamed Spiral by the digital payments company.
Prior to this year’s surge of institutional interest. Square purchased $50 million worth of bitcoin under the leadership of Dorsey, who has regularly professed his interest in cryptocurrency. Further, it invested $170 million in February, increasing its stake to $1 billion.
A hardware wallet for bitcoin is also being considered by Square in an effort to make the currency more accessible. After Dec. 10, Square said the new name will take effect. Although the “SQ” ticker symbol on the New York Stock Exchange wouldn’t change at that time.
