DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES | DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Business Square, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, Square or the Company) creates tools that help sellers of all sizes start, run, and grow their businesses – from payment processing to point of sale, hardware to software, business loans to payroll and more. Businesses and individuals can also use Square Cash, an easy way to send and receive money, as well as Caviar, a food delivery service for popular restaurants. Square was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in the United States, Canada, Japan, and Australia. Initial Public Offering In November 2015 , the Company completed its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in which it issued and sold 29,700,000 shares of Class A common stock at a public offering price of $9.00 per share and a selling stockholder sold 1,350,000 shares of Class A common stock. The Company did not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the selling stockholder. The total net proceeds received by the Company from the IPO were $245.7 million after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions of $14.7 million and other offering expenses of approximately $6.9 million . Out of Period Adjustments During the three months ended June 30, 2016, the Company recorded an out of period adjustment of $6.0 million to transaction, loan and advance losses as a result of a correction to the calculation of its reserve for transaction losses. The adjustment was recorded to correct an understatement of transaction losses in prior periods. Of the total amount of this adjustment, $0.5 million is related to the three months ended March 31, 2016, and $2.6 million , $1.6 million and $ 1.0 million is related to the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014, and 2013, respectively. The remaining $0.3 million is related to historical periods. The Company does not believe that such amounts are material with respect to the estimated operating loss or estimated net loss for the current fiscal year or any previously reported consolidated financial statements. Litigation Settlement On June 8, 2016 , a final, definitive settlement agreement (Settlement Agreement) was entered into by Robert E. Morley, REM Holdings 3, LLC, Jack Dorsey, Jim McKelvey, and the Company. The Settlement Agreement required an aggregate total payment of $50 million to plaintiffs, including meaningful contributions by Mr. Dorsey and Mr. McKelvey. The Company made a payment of $48 million to plaintiffs and met its obligations under the Settlement Agreement. This amount was classified within general and administrative expenses on the condensed consolidated statements of operations for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 . On June 17, 2016 , the Court entered an Order dismissing the complaints in their entirety, with prejudice. Basis of Presentation The accompanying interim condensed consolidated financial statements of the Company are unaudited. These interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (U.S. GAAP) and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for interim financial information. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. The December 31, 2015 condensed consolidated balance sheet was derived from the audited financial statements as of that date, but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. The accompanying unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and, in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments of a normal recurring nature considered necessary to state fairly the Company's consolidated financial position, results of operations, comprehensive loss, and cash flows for the interim periods. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation. The interim results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2016 , or for any other future annual or interim period. The information included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q should be read in conjunction with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” “Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk,” and the Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto included in Items 7, 7A, and 8, respectively, in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 . Use of Estimates The preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, and expenses, as well as related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from the Company’s estimates. To the extent that there are material differences between these estimates and actual results, the Company’s financial condition or operating results will be materially affected. The Company bases its estimates on past experience and other assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable under the circumstances, and the Company evaluates these estimates on an ongoing basis. Significant estimates, judgments, and assumptions in these consolidated financial statements include, but are not limited to, those related to revenue recognition, accrued transaction losses, provision for uncollectible receivables related to merchant cash advances (MCAs), valuation of loans held for sale, business combinations, goodwill and intangible assets, income taxes, and share-based compensation. Concentration of Credit Risk For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 , the Company had no customer that accounted for greater than 10% of total net revenue. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 , the Company had no customer other than Starbucks that accounted for greater than 10% of total net revenue. The Company had three third-party processors that represented approximately 47% , 39% , and 11% of settlements receivable as of September 30, 2016 . The same three parties represented approximately 56% , 23% , and 16% of settlements receivable as of December 31, 2015 . The Company places its cash and cash equivalents and investments in marketable securities with large creditworthy U.S. financial institutions. Balances in these accounts may exceed federally insured limits at times. Significant Accounting Policies Except as described below, there have been no material changes to the Company’s significant accounting policies during the nine months ended September 30, 2016 , as compared to the significant accounting policies described in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 . Loans Held for Sale The Company provides loans to sellers prequalified through an analysis of the aggregated data of the seller’s business which includes, but is not limited to, the seller’s historical processing volumes, transaction count, chargebacks, growth, and length of time as a Square customer. The loans are originated by a bank, from whom the Company purchases the loans obtaining all rights, title, and interest. The loans are classified as held for sale upon purchase, as it is the Company’s intent to sell all of its rights, title, and interest in these loans to third-party investors for an up-front origination fee when the loans are sold. The Company also earns a servicing fee by continuing to service the loans by remitting monies to the third-party investors. Revenue from origination fees are recognized upon transfer of title to investors and servicing revenue is recognized as servicing is delivered. A loan that is initially designated as held for sale may be reclassified to held for investment if and when the Company's intent for that loan changes. There have been no reclassifications made to date. Loans are recorded at the lower of cost or fair value. To determine the fair value of loans, the Company utilizes industry standard modeling, such as discounted cash flow models, to arrive at an estimate of fair value. Recently Issued Accounting Standards In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers , and issued subsequent amendments to the initial guidance within ASU 2015-04, ASU 2016-08, ASU 2016-10, and ASU 2016-12. The new guidance will replace all current U.S. GAAP guidance on this topic and eliminate all industry specific guidance. The core principal of this new guidance is that revenue is recognized when promised goods or services are transferred to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration for which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This guidance is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The guidance can be applied either retrospectively to each period presented or as a cumulative effect adjustment as of the date of adoption. The Company has not yet selected a transition method and is evaluating the impact of adopting this new accounting standard update on the consolidated financial statements and related disclosures. In March 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-04, Recognition of Breakage for Certain Prepaid Stored-Value Products. This guidance specifies how prepaid stored-value product liabilities should be derecognized, thereby eliminating the current and potential future diversity in practice. This guidance is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this new guidance may have on the consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting , which is intended to simplify several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment transactions, including the income tax consequences, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities, and classification on the statement of cash flows. This guidance is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2016, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this new guidance may have on the consolidated financial statements. In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments , which requires measurement and recognition of expected credit losses for financial assets held. This guidance is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this new guidance may have on the consolidated financial statements. In August 2016, the FASB issues ASU No. 2016-15, Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments. This guidance addresses several specific cash flow issues with the objective of reducing the existing diversity in practice. This guidance is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this new guidance may have on the consolidated financial statements. |