Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter and chief executive of payments firm Block, has unveiled a new product designed to help small businesses accept and hold bitcoin as an alternative to traditional card payments.
The new Square bitcoin wallet will enable US retailers using the company’s sales platform to convert a portion of their daily revenue into bitcoin automatically, with no transaction fees until 2027.
From this week, sellers on Square’s bitcoin network can opt to auto-convert part of their daily card takings into bitcoin, while from 10 November they will be able to accept bitcoin payments directly and convert up to 50% of daily sales into the cryptocurrency.
After 1 January 2027, Block plans to introduce a 1% processing fee per bitcoin transaction. The feature will initially be available only in the United States, excluding New York, which has tighter digital currency regulations.
Dorsey, 48, described the launch as part of his vision for bitcoin as a “hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty”, arguing that the cryptocurrency provides a more transparent, decentralised alternative to fiat currency.
“You can say that I want 1% of my incoming revenue to be auto-converted to bitcoin, and you just let it sit there,” Dorsey told investors at a launch event in New York. “It will likely increase in value — it’s certainly a hedge against everything that we’re seeing in the economy.”
Dorsey called bitcoin “inherently deflationary”, referencing its finite supply of 21 million tokens and its long-term performance over 16 years.
The entrepreneur, who co-founded Twitter in 2006 and supported Elon Musk’s 2022 takeover of the company, has long been one of Silicon Valley’s most prominent bitcoin advocates. His company Block (formerly Square) has invested heavily in the cryptocurrency and blockchain technology over the past decade.
The new service also marks an attempt to challenge traditional credit card networks, which Dorsey criticised for high transaction fees and limited benefits for merchants.
“More and more sellers are getting frustrated with credit card fees for the value they get back,” he said. “Bitcoin is a good alternative because it has a low cost basis and low fees. It offers the convenience of digital payments without the burden of extra charges.”
Miles Suter, head of bitcoin product at Block, said the aim was to make bitcoin payments as seamless as card payments, while giving small businesses access to financial tools previously reserved for large corporations.
Block’s shares rose 2.6% to $81.11 in New York following the announcement.
Founded in 2009, Square began with a simple mobile card reader that allowed small merchants to take payments via smartphones. It has since evolved into a global fintech platform serving millions of sellers through point-of-sale, banking, and payroll services.
Dorsey rebranded Square as Block in 2021 to reflect its focus on digital assets and decentralised finance. The company’s bitcoin business has become a major revenue driver, handling billions in crypto transactions through its Cash App service.
Dorsey has previously said he believes bitcoin could become “the native currency of the internet”, arguing that digital money offers independence from centralised financial systems and inflationary pressures.
The latest move to integrate bitcoin into retail payments marks the most direct step yet in that vision — and a signal that Dorsey sees cryptocurrency as both a financial tool and a philosophical statement about the future of money.
