With the Marqeta modern card issuing platform, Square was able to scale its existing U.S. card program and expand it into the Canadian market, making it available for Square sellers of all types and sizes across the country.

Small businesses in particular have felt the pain of the ongoing pandemic, and managing cash flow is one of the top reasons why small businesses ultimately fail1. In 2019, Marqeta and Square first introduced Square Card, an expense card for small business owners that allows them to access their earnings immediately and without additional fees, so they can reinvest it into the business to keep it running smoothly. When a Square seller processes a sale, the income immediately lands in their Square Balance and can be accessed instantly with their Square Card. Before Square Card, Canadian sellers had to wait for the next business day for their money to reach an external bank account.

Marqeta’s global modern card issuing platform enabled Square to expand and quickly ramp up in a new international market. To help navigate the intricacies of this process, Square relied on Marqeta’s integrations with card networks, compliance expertise, and risk management capabilities. Marqeta’s push provisioning functionality made it possible for Square sellers to instantly create a new, tokenized virtual card, eliminating the need to wait for a physical card in the mail to access their funds. In addition, Square used Marqeta platform’s Just-In-Time (JIT) Funding to seamlessly control the authorization of transactions based on the attributes and parameters the team had previously set up when they launched the U.S. Square Card program.

"Our partnership with Marqeta has enabled us to build a highly successful card program with the ability to scale as we grow and expand into new markets," said Christina Riechers, Head of Product, Square Banking Team. "Businesses should be able to access their money as soon as they make a sale, and we’re proud to bring that experience to sellers across Canada."

"Our platform helps companies build innovative card programs that scale globally rapidly, and the Square Card expansion into Canada is a testament to Marqeta’s commitment to helping its customers grow and scale," said Vidya Peters, Chief Operating Officer at Marqeta. "We’re proud to power the latest iteration of Square’s global expansion with this announcement."

Square Card is issued by Square Canada, Inc. pursuant to a license from Mastercard International, Inc., and may be used wherever Mastercard is accepted.