Payment start-up Square explores IPO: WSJ
(Reuters) - Square Inc, the payment start-up co-founded and headed by Twitter Inc's Jack Dorsey, is in discussions with banks about an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Square has held discussions with banks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Morgan Stanley, about an IPO in 2014, the financial daily reported on its website. It cautioned that no bank has been hired and the timing of a deal could change.
Representatives of Square, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Founded in 2009 by Twitter co-founder Dorsey, Square makes a credit card reader that slots into smartphones such as those made by Apple Inc. Twitter itself is set to go public this week.
Square is growing nearly as fast as Twitter, with sales approaching $1 billion in 2014, according to an internal projection people familiar with the matter shared with the Wall Street Journal. Sales will be about $550 million this year on total payment volume of around $20 billion, the newspaper added.
Dorsey has said publicly that the company does not turn a profit, but has discussed a plan internally that would make Square profitable in 2015, the Wall Street Journal said.
Square is a close strategic partner of Starbucks Corp, which has also invested in the start-up.
(Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis in New York. Editing by Andre Grenon)
