Square Makes First Overseas Move, Launches in Japan

Japan has long had square watermelons, and now it has Square for mobile payments too. This marks the first overseas expansion for Square, the funky iPhone add-on gadget that lets anyone swipe credit card payments.

Square’s Japan launch comes in partnership with Sumitomo Mitsui Card Corporation (SMCC) and involves both the iPhone gadget and the iPad-oriented Square Register. The company will charge a “low” transaction rate of 3.25 percent per swipe. That’s one hell of a cut for retailers to swallow, though it is lower than some of Square’s rivals. Funds from swiped payments on Square are “automatically deposited in the merchant’s bank account the next business day for participating banks and within one week for other banks”, says today’s Read more…