With a new feature that allows customers to automatically invest the leftover change from Cash Card debit purchases into bitcoin or in the stock market, Block Inc. (SQ) appears to be in a position to increase the connections across its many offerings. Block, the company that owns Square’s merchant division and the Cash App mobile wallet, announced on Wednesday that Cash Card customers would have the option to round up any purchase and choose to invest the difference in preferred stock or bitcoin. Block Inc. (SQ) views the change as an attempt to expand user comfort with investment.
In an interview, the head of Cash App’s financial services, Ryan Budd, said, “For first-time investors, getting started can feel daunting and complicated. At Cash App, we’re focused on making our financial products easy to use and accessible to everyone.” Various other services, including Acorns, have also tried to make it easier for people to put spare change toward investments.
The Cash App started as a platform for users to send money to pals, but it has grown into a hub for personal finance in general. The Cash Card debit card connects to a user’s account and enables in-person and online shopping. The Cash App also offers a stock-trading platform where users may purchase fractional shares of stocks or bitcoin using a user interface that, according to Block, is appealing to average people because it places more emphasis on corporate logos than ticker symbols. Block’s Cash Card offering attracted more than 15 million active monthly customers in March. That month, four million accounts traded or owned stock on the Cash App platform.
Although there may be some overlap in the customers of those two services, the round-up statement shows that the corporation sees a chance to drive strong links between them. Budd continued, “We’re excited when our products can work together like this to provide great value and ease for our customers.”
The round-up feature, he said, will also work with the Cash App Boost program, which offers customers a choice of rewards that change regularly, such as 15% off a purchase at Shake Shack Inc. Block has been attempting to realize synergies between many aspects of its company in general, including for loyalty programs and buy-now-pay-later transactions.
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