Monday, December 6, 2021
The renaming trend in tech began back in 2015, when Google renamed itself Alphabet. The name changes are said to be a way to better represent what the firms do. But it remains to be seen if any will gain traction with consumers, who, for example, still use the names Google and Facebook.
"The change to Block acknowledges the company's growth," Square said in a press release. "Block is an overarching ecosystem of many businesses united by their purpose of economic empowerment, and serves many people – individuals, artists, fans, developers and sellers." It added that the change distinguishes the company from its various businesses, or "building blocks."
Since it's 2009 entry into POS payments, Square has branched out into person-to-person payments with Cash App, working capital (Square Capital), cryptocurrency (Square Crypto), debit cards (Cash Card), business management and marketing services, and music and video streaming (Tidal). All of these offerings will continue to operate under their existing monikers, the company said. And the company's NYSE ticker symbol "SQ" will remain at least for now.
During the third quarter of 2021, Square processed $45.4 billion in gross payment volume, a year-over-year increase of 43 percent, according to company reports. Large sellers (those with over $500,000 in GPV) were the largest base of users, accounting for 34 percent of total GPV for the quarter, the company said.
"The name [Block] has many associated meanings for the company – building blocks, neighborhood blocks and their local businesses, communities coming together at block parties full of music, a blockchain, a section of code, and obstacles to overcome," Square wrote.
News of the name change came just days after Square's founder, Jack Dorsey, stepped down as CEO of Twitter, the social media network he helped to found, in order to focus exclusively on Square. Dorsey, a controversial figure in Silicon Valley and Washington, had been pressured to resign by investors who argued he was overcommitted because of his dual CEO roles at Twitter and Square, according to published reports.
"We built Square for our seller business, which is where it belongs," Dorsey said. "Block is a new name, but our purpose of economic empowerment remains the same. No matter how we grow or change, we will continue to build tools that help increase access to the economy." 
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