ST. LOUIS (AP) - The tech company Square has opened an office in St. Louis and plans to hire more than 200 people over the next five years, boosting the city's effort to become a Midwest hub for high-tech businesses.
The San Francisco-based company announced the new location Wednesday, not a big surprise since it was founded in 2009 by two St. Louis natives, Jim McKelvey and Jack Dorsey. Dorsey is co-founder of Twitter.
Square, founded in 2009, is behind a mobile payment device that plugs into the headphone jack of smartphones and tablet computers, facilitating credit card payments. The company processes about $30 billion in transactions each year.
Company officials plan to hire 40 full-time workers in St. Louis immediately, with positions including customer support, recruitment and office management.
The office is in the Cortex district of St. Louis' Central West End, a growing area for high-paying tech firms. Square officials said St. Louis is a prime location for expansion because of its growing economy and a rich pool of talent from top universities, research centers and training programs.
"The explosion of our startup and technology scene in St. Louis helped us compete to win this project," Mayor Francis Slay said in a statement. "I want to thank St. Louisans Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey for their continued commitment to our hometown."
Dorsey called St. Louis "an important part of Square's history." McKelvey said there is no reason why a place like St. Louis can't continue to prosper in the tech field.
"There's talent all over the country, not just on the coasts," McKelvey said.
Gov. Jay Nixon called Square's decision to locate in St. Louis "a huge win for the region and our state."
McKelvey and Dorsey met when Dorsey, then a teenager, worked as an intern for one of McKelvey's companies. They remained friends and in 2009, McKelvey remarked to Dorsey about how he lost an order for his glassblowing business because he couldn't process a credit card for a sale. The two then worked together to develop Square.
Dorsey is CEO of Square and took over as interim CEO of Twitter in June after the resignation of Dick Costolo amid criticism over Twitter's disappointing financial performance and share price decline.