Starbucks gave them $25 million. Square lost $71 million on the deal so far and it won't be done for another year. So Starbucks got discounted payments, plus eq

Starbucks gave them $25 million. Square lost $71 million on the deal so far and it won't be done for another year. So Starbucks got discounted payments, plus equity in Square, plus a board seat. (Looking at it another way: Square got a loan at nearly a 100% annual interest rate plus loss of equity.) As for "visibility" they tried to promote the Square app to pay at Starbucks, nobody used it, and they killed that in 2014. "This is an epic partnership" - Jack Dorsey, 2012.