Zoomer style: Twitter co-founder's fintech releases 'magic wand' for payments
The development comes on a wave of viral videos on social networks
Cash App releases "magic wand" with NFC-chip for payments / Photo: cash.app
Billionaire Jack Dorsey's company Block has unveiled an unusual payment accessory for its Cash App service - a miniature "magic wand" with a built-in NFC chip. It can be used to pay in stores just like a regular bank card or smartphone, the company said in a press release.
The device is tied to a Cash App debit account and is aimed primarily at teens and young adults. "The Cash App Wand is designed to match the way Generation Z expresses its style and identity," according to the report. This is the company's first step toward a whole line of unconventional payment gadgets, from fitness bracelets to baseball caps with a chip inside, Bloomberg suggests.
Block's idea follows a trend on social networks: in recent months, videos of a similar plastic credit card wand have been actively circulated there, which users filmed in supermarkets and Disneyland, Bloomberg notes. The Block magic wand replicates the idea of that device, Bloomberg writes. According to the company's head of hardware, Thomas Templeton, test participants enjoyed demonstrating the wand to those around them right at the checkout. "We see here a unique opportunity to make payments visible and social for the first time," he added.
The new product comes at a challenging time for Cash App due to scandals related to inadequate customer verification and weak fraud protection. The company paid out a total of $190 million in two major cases, Bloomberg recalls. That hit the number of users, and Block has been actively rebuilding its audience ever since. Young people have become a major growth point: according to the company, one in five U.S. teenagers already uses a Cash App card, and the average age of Cash App Green loyalty program members is about 34 - compared to 50 for traditional bank customers.
The company was able to improve its financial performance: in the first quarter of 2026, Cash App's profit grew by 38% year-on-year. The service makes money not only on transfers, but also on credit products - in particular, on the "Buy Now, Pay Later" function.
Block CEO Jack Dorsey co-founded Twitter in 2006 and served as the company's CEO until 2008. In 2015, he returned to this position and led the service until 2021, and left the board of directors in 2022. Dorsey's fortune is estimated at $6.3 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time rankings, which are updated in real time based on quotes.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
