Square to acquire Afterpay for $29 billion

Square announced plans to acquire all outstanding shares of Australian buy-now-pay-later service Afterpay for $29 billion in Square stock. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.

Today, we announced our plans to acquire @afterpay_au to advance our shared mission of economic empowerment. Together, we’re aiming to build financial products that are inclusive for all.

Press release: https://t.co/QRwgNPPAv3
Legal notices: https://t.co/hADBjogLyb pic.twitter.com/AUqky9mGKM

— Square (@Square) August 1, 2021

For each Afterpay share, shareholders will receive 0.375 Square shares. The premium will be 30%. Square will also list its shares on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Afterpay enables merchants to offer installment payments for goods in Australia, the United States, Canada and New Zealand. Under the Clearpay brand, the service operates in France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.

After the deal closes, Square will integrate Afterpay into its acquiring business and its own Cash App.

Shares in the buy-now-pay-later service jumped 19% on the news.

Earlier, ARK Invest purchased 225,937 shares of Square after statement by the payments company about the forthcoming launch of a Bitcoin-focused platform of decentralized services.

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