London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Sep 08, 2025

The $29 billion deal in 11 weeks: how Square bought Afterpay

The $29 billion deal in 11 weeks: how Square bought Afterpay

Jack Dorsey introduced the world to expressing itself in just 140 characters as the creator of Twitter Inc, and his payments company, Square Inc, also likes getting straight to the point.

Square’s purchase of Australian buy now, pay later provider Afterpay Ltd for $29 billion in stock, the largest ever acquisition by Dorsey’s firm, was consummated within three months, said four people with knowledge of the deal talks.

Such a short time is regarded as uncommon in the world of huge cross-border M&As, where armies of advisers can spend months negotiating key terms and poring over books and business plans to ensure there are no hidden skeletons.

As the business boomed in the past year, Afterpay fielded takeover interest from six potential buyers, including U.S. consumer banks, one of the sources said, but Square made more sense as the companies were already exploring services tie-ups.

Square wanted to provide a buy now, pay later feature for its popular Cash app, while Afterpay hoped to accelerate growth in the U.S. market, in competition with Affirm and Klarna.

The deal talks for the largest buyout ever for an Australian firm started last year to explore a strategic partnership in response to growing competition from incumbents, and turned towards acquisition after key executives of the two firms met in Hawaii in May, three of the sources said.

The executives left the tropical island after a couple of days with the agreement that they needed to be combined, the sources said, adding that it took just 11 weeks from that point to finalise the transaction terms.

There were good reasons for the speed - banks and new entrants are aiming for a bigger slice of the buy now, pay later services that have boomed in the past year, as homebound consumers used them to borrow and spend online during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Australian firm’s share price slumped 10% on July 14 on media reports that Apple Inc was working on a buy now, pay later feature in coordination with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Such volatility put an emphasis on brevity. Shares in both companies reacted positively to the deal.

On Monday, Afterpay closed in Sydney up 18.76%, while Square climbed 10.15% in New York, despite the prospect of shareholders being diluted by the new shares to pay for the profitless Australian company. Afterpay rose a further 11.3% on Tuesday.

Spokespersons at Square and Afterpay declined to comment on the deal background. The sources declined to be named as they were not authorised to talk to the media.

‘PROJECT POCKET’


Buy now, pay later firms lend shoppers instant funds, typically up to a few thousand dollars, which can be paid off interest-free. They generally make money from merchant commissions and late fees, rather than interest payments.

In this way, they sidestep the legal definition of credit and therefore credit laws.

That means such providers are not required to run background checks on new accounts, unlike credit card companies, and normally request just an applicant’s name, address and birth date. Critics say that makes the system an easier fraud target.

Executives at Square and Afterpay shared a desire to expand access to customers globally and saw combining forces as the best way to take on competitors, both present and potential, in the business, the sources said.

Afterpay co-founder Nick Molnar first got to know Amrita Ahuja, chief financial officer at Square, years ago when he was living in the United States. Ahuja then introduced the Australian to Dorsey, said one of the sources.

The deal talks, internally named “Project Pocket”, picked up pace after Afterpay engaged Goldman to explore a U.S. listing in April, said another, which was soon followed by Square showing an interest in buying the company.

Soon after, Afterpay hired boutique Qatalyst Partners to evaluate the offer, with the option that if the deal fell through they would push ahead with the plan for the U.S. listing, said another person.

Sydney-based boutique advisory Highbury Partners was also retained by Afterpay’s board.

The Hawaii trip finally led to the conclusion that each had what the other wanted.

For Square, it was Afterpay’s expertise in buy now, pay later and its existing relationships with large merchants. And Afterpay envied Square’s vast reach and popularity in the U.S. market.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
Generations Born After 1939 Unlikely to Reach Age One Hundred, New Study Finds
End to a four-year manhunt in New Zealand: the father who abducted his children to the forests was killed, the three siblings were found
Germany Suspends Debt Rules, Funnels €500 Billion Toward Military and Proxy War Strategy
EU Prepares for War
BMW Eyes Growth in China with New All‑Electric Neue Klasse Lineup
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Brand-New $1 Million Yacht Sinks Just Fifteen Minutes After Maiden Launch in Turkey
Here’s What the FBI Seized in John Bolton Raid — and the Legal Risks He Faces
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
×