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We just got a look at one way the Square deal could work for Afterpay
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Just under a fortnight since Afterpay (ASX:APT) drew its last trading breath ahead of its ASX departure, markets are getting the first look at how the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) platform is being integrated with Square.
The integration becomes available at the same time Block Inc (NYSE:SQ, ASX: SQ2), the parent company of Square, has announced it has completed the acquisition of Afterpay.
The Square platform has launched its first integration with Afterpay, providing Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) functionality to sellers using Square online for e-commerce in Australia and the US.
Sellers to benefit first
While flagging several ways to incorporate BNPL options into the Square business, the seller side for merchants is first off the blocks.
Square said the integration will help sellers offer Afterpay’s BNPL experience to their customers, in turn helping them attract new shoppers and drive incremental revenue.
An early test indicated shoppers were likely to spend more if provided with an option to make purchases in instalments, the company said.
The announcement marks the latest update from the company in its efforts to integrate the platform, following its marquee, all-share deal to acquire the business last August — a deal which received final regulatory approval in January.
Square-Block-Oz mega deal
Last December, the Jack Dorsey-led fintech announced it was changing its corporate name from Square Inc to Block in December.
Here was Dorsey’s explanation at the time:
“Block references the neighborhood blocks where we find our sellers, a blockchain, block parties full of music, obstacles to overcome, a section of code, building blocks, and of course, tungsten cube,” Dorsey tweeted.
Writing about the company a few days ago, some clever editor at Nasdaq came up with the headline ‘Block: Jack Dorsey too hip to be Square’.
Afterpay last traded on the ASX at $66.47, giving it a valuation of ~$20bn. Afterpay’s all-time high was $159.50, which it reached on February 10, 2021, when the Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) sector was peaking.
The mammoth $39 billion acquistion of Afterpay was the largest deal in Australian corporate history.
The news made headlines globally, with some analysts flagging potential synergies between the companies.
