People do not often pay online for small, person-to-person transactions. Mailing cash or a check seems like less trouble than entering extensive personal information or paying transaction fees.

But what if sending money was as easy as filling in the subject line of an email? Square Cash, a mobile application released to the public early last month, claims to make online transactions just that simple.

The app first launched as an invite-only beta in May by Square, Inc. Square, the latest venture by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, is best known for a small, plastic device that allows smartphones or tablets to act as credit card readers.

The Square Cash app is available for free for both Android and iOS users.

To send a payment with the app, users enter the email address of the intended recipient, then put cash@square.com in the CC line and the desired amount of money in the subject line. After sending their first payment, users receive an email from Square with a link to enter debit card information, which is then retained for all future payments.

With just an email address and a debit card, anyone can send up to $250 through Square each week. By entering more information – either a Facebook log-in or the last four digits of your Social Security number – it is possible to send as much as $2,500 per week.

While the mobile app streamlines the process, users can also send money via Square Cash directly from their personal email accounts.

Square is far from the first entrant into the online cash-transaction marketplace. Mobile payment app Venmo features a strong social media component and has gained traction with younger users. Google Wallet has been around since 2011, and the company announced integration with Gmail in May. PayPal, the most established service, has more than 100 million registered user accounts.

But Square Cash might have what it takes to stand out in a crowded field. The service is free, fast and incredibly simple.

“The credit card industry as we know it is dead,” Forbes blogger Joshua Steimle wrote after using the service to pay a contractor $500. Wall Street Journal tech columnist Walter Mossberg called Square Cash the “quickest, simplest method I’ve seen for sending money from one person to another.”

Still, Mossberg also pointed out a concern that Square Cash shares with almost all online transaction brokers: Users have to be willing to trust Square to keep their financial information out of the hands of hackers. While Square uses cryptographic signatures and live monitoring programs to protect transactions, security concerns might still be a deal breaker for some.

Published on November 3, 2013 at 11:26 pm

Contact Linda: lggorman@syr.edu