The Extraordinary Reinvention of Square

They are becoming a B2B software company, building back-office tools. Square Capital is a financial service, but a majority of the new products they've rolled out are small business software products.

One critical question not yet addressed is how Square handles the impending (October) switch to ship and pin readers. My guess is they take a one-time charge by shipping new readers to every customer; otherwise they are open to a competitor swooping in.

> With Wallet’s demise went Square’s Starbucks partnership that allowed people to pay for their coffee using the app (though the company continues to process payments for Starbucks)

Fortune neglected to mention how disastrous that deal was for Square. They lose money on every transaction. They spent, and continue to spend, substantial money for press and acquiring a customer outside their target market (small businesses.)

Lastly, there is no criticism that they have filed for an IPO while there CEO is also the temporary CEO of another public company. That's an incredible distraction at a difficult time for any company — exactly the moment when you want your leadership focused on getting everyone on the same page.