Square Credit Card Levels Up: Rewards Built for Small Businesses and a New Way to Pay Vendors

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ach financial

ACH (Automated Clearing House) is an electronic network banks use to move money between accounts, like a digital mail carrier that delivers payroll, dividends, bill payments and other transfers. Investors care because ACH affects how quickly a company can pay shareholders, collect revenue or move cash for operations; slower or disrupted ACH flows can change available cash, timing of dividends and short-term liquidity assumptions.

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Optical character recognition (OCR) scanning is technology that converts printed or handwritten text from images, PDFs, or scanned documents into editable, searchable digital text. For investors, OCR makes financial statements, regulatory filings, press releases and medical records easy to search, analyze and feed into spreadsheets or databases—like turning photographed pages into a digital spreadsheet so key numbers and terms can be found and compared quickly.

apy financial

APY, or Annual Percentage Yield, shows how much money an investment or savings account can earn in a year, taking into account both the interest rate and how often that interest is added. Think of it like a snowball growing as it rolls downhill: the more frequently the snowball gains new snow, the faster it gets bigger. For investors, APY helps compare different options to see which one offers the best return over time.

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Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is the yearly cost of borrowing money expressed as a percentage, combining interest and most fees into a single rate so borrowers can compare loans like comparing price tags. For investors, APR matters because it affects how much companies pay to raise capital, influences consumer demand for credit, and helps compare returns or costs across loans, bonds, and financial products — all of which can change profits and valuations.

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FDIC insurance is a government-backed protection that guarantees bank deposit accounts up to a set dollar limit, so savers get their money back if a covered bank fails. It matters to investors because it lowers the risk of holding cash at insured banks, supports confidence in the banking system (like a safety net under a tightrope), and influences decisions about where to park short-term funds or assess the stability of financial institutions.

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New Bill Pay capabilities pair with an expanded, refreshed Square Credit Card to give more sellers a simpler way to manage every outflow from one platform

DISTRIBUTED-WORKFORCE/OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Square today announced a significant expansion of its Square Credit Card program and a new Square Bill Pay capability that enables sellers to fund vendor payments with their Square Credit Card, regardless of whether the vendor accepts cards. Together, the updates give sellers a more powerful way to manage cash flow, business expenses, and vendor payments from a single platform.

Operating on the American Express network, the refreshed Square Credit Card now features unlimited 3% cash back on Square Bill Pay transactions and 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. Rewards are redeemable as cash deposits into a seller’s Square Savings account, statement credit, or free processing. And now, Square Credit Card sellers can also use their card to pay more types of vendors, including those that don’t accept card payments, giving sellers more control over their cash flow.

The new features build on the card’s existing benefits: a dynamic credit line that can increase as a seller’s business grows, along with no personal guarantee, no annual fees, no late fees, and no foreign transaction fees. Additionally, the company meaningfully broadened its Bill Pay functionality, expanding it from a feature previously limited to Square Checking sellers into a more powerful accounts payable solution that all sellers can use to pay expenses.

Easing the Cash Flow Burden

For small businesses, managing outflows is just as critical as generating revenue. Across the country, half of small businesses cite uneven cash flow as a top financial challenge – a problem that can be exacerbated by timing mismatches between when bills are due and when sellers collect on receivables. By enabling sellers to pay vendors with their Square Credit Card regardless of the vendor’s payment method preference, Square is giving businesses more flexibility in managing cash flow while helping them earn rewards and reduce the manual overhead of managing multiple payment methods across various vendors and platforms.

"When it comes to running a trading card shop, inventory is everything. We manage over 10,000 items, and when the right cards come up, I have to move quickly. That can mean spending thousands on the spot before the window to act closes," said Melvin Bontrager, owner of Lafayette, Indiana-based Rainer's TCG Shop. "Square Credit Card makes that possible: I can put inventory on the card, earn cash back with every purchase, and automatically pay down my balance from my daily sales without disrupting my cash flow. And having my sales, banking, and credit card all in Square means I always know where I stand financially. When you're moving this much inventory, that clarity is worth a lot."

Built for Small Businesses

Most business credit cards are built to rack up airline miles and hotel points, rewards designed for frequent travelers – not for the local restaurants, salons, and shops that shape neighborhoods. Square Credit Card puts money back where it's actually useful: unlimited 3% cash back on Square Bill Pay transactions and 1.5% cash back on every other purchase, redeemable as a cash deposit into a Square Savings account that now earns up to 3.50% APY, a statement credit, or free payment processing that directly reduces the cost of doing business. Since expanding eligibility at the end of last year, the number of sellers actively using Square Credit Card has doubled¹.

That seller-centric design extends to how Square has enhanced Bill Pay. Now, sellers can use their Square Credit Card to pay an even broader variety of vendors through Bill Pay, including rent, insurance, marketing expenses, and more – even when those vendors don’t accept cards. Square routes the money the way the vendor prefers to receive it, either as a direct deposit into their bank account (ACH) or a check in the mail. With 3% cash back on every Bill Pay transaction, a seller’s Square Credit Card rewards always cover the fee. Additional Bill Pay improvements include faster bill capture via OCR scanning, simplified vendor setup, and new access points across the Dashboard – supporting sellers beyond those with a Square Checking account, with external bank account funding coming soon.

"Small business owners are too often forced to choose between paying vendors on time and holding onto their cash," said Andrea Raj, Head of Product for Square Banking. "Standalone solutions typically come with additional costs to bridge that gap, and even then, don’t solve the entire problem: you’re still spending your cash on hand, or putting it on a card not designed for small businesses. We built the opposite. Pay vendors on time, keep cash longer, and earn the right rewards for it, all in one place and while saving on fees. That's only possible because it's built into the platform sellers already run their business on."

Expanding access at every level

These updates continue a year of significant investment in broadening access to Square's financial products. Earlier this year, Square expanded eligibility for Square Loans through improved underwriting models that can now more accurately evaluate the creditworthiness of sellers new to the platform and seasonal operators. Square also recently partnered with Homegrown to offer expansion capital of up to $1 million for eligible multi-location sellers ready to open their next location. Today's Credit Card and Bill Pay expansions extend that same commitment: more sellers can now access the credit and payment tools they need to manage cash flow on their own terms.

To learn more about Square Credit Card and Bill Pay, visit squareup.com/banking.

About Square

Square helps businesses turn transactions into connections and businesses into neighborhood favorites.

In 2009, Square started with a simple invention — the first mobile card reader, which changed how the entire financial system thinks about small businesses. Square has since grown into a global business platform helping millions of sellers of all sizes participate and thrive in their communities.

Whether independently run or a global chain, Square understands that sellers succeed when they have the freedom to focus on the experiences that keep customers coming back. From point of sale and payments to online commerce, staff management, cash flow tools, and more, Square brings together the tools sellers need to run and grow on one intelligent platform. For more information, visit squareup.com.

Disclosures

Square Credit Cards are issued by Celtic Bank, pursuant to a license from American Express. If approved, APR may vary based on creditworthiness and other factors. Subject to credit approval. American Express is a registered trademark of American Express.

Square Savings accounts are provided by Square Financial Services, Inc. Member FDIC. Accrue annual percentage yield (APY) of 1.00% based on your total savings balance (inclusive of all folders and accrued unpaid interest). You may qualify for an increased APY of 3.50% if your total savings balance (inclusive of all folders and accrued unpaid interest) is at least $10,000. See Square Savings Deposit Account Terms and the Interest Rate Chart for more information. APY subject to change, current as of 6/8/2026. No minimum deposit is required to open an account. Accounts will not be charged monthly fees. The Square Savings deposit sweep program distributes your funds among multiple FDIC-insured partner banks, meaning your eligible savings deposits have FDIC insurance coverage of up to $2.5 million. Pending balances are not subject to FDIC insurance.

All loans and Savings accounts are issued by Square Financial Services, Inc., a Utah-Chartered Industrial Bank. Member FDIC. Actual fee depends upon payment card processing history, loan amount and other eligibility factors. A minimum payment of 1/18th of the initial loan balance is required every 60 days and full loan repayment is required within 18 months. Loan eligibility is not guaranteed. All loans are subject to credit approval.

Block, Inc. is not a Bank. Square Checking is provided by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC.

The Expansion Capital program offered is a product of Homegrown Financing, Inc. and is not a product or service of Block, Inc. or its Square brand. Block, Inc. and Square are not parties to any revenue assignment agreements, and have no liability with respect to any capital offered or provided through this program.

¹ Based on Square Credit Card sellers with monthly purchasing activity from December 2025 through the end of June 2026

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260811869781/en/

Media contact: press@squareup.com

Source: Block, Inc.